Wednesday, December 9, 2009

Another posterior pituitary hormone


A recent paper in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Science shows that that the posterior pituitary (neurohypophysis ) secretes another hormone besides antidiuretic hormone (ADH; vasopressin) and oxytocin (OT).  It is the hormone secretin.

Secretin is already known to be secreted from the intestinal lining, having a variety of effects in regulating stomach and pancreatic function during the digestive process.  New findings indicate, however, that secretin is also secreted by the posterior pituitary.

Neurohypophysial release of secretin is triggered by plasma hyperosmolality—as in dehydration of the body. Secretin then promotes the expression and release of ADH, which in turn promotes water conservation by the kidney.  Secretin also appears to have direct water-conserving effects in the kidney as well.

Want to know more?

Secretin as a neurohypophysial factor regulating body water homeostasis
Jessica Y. S. Chu, et al. 
Proceedings of the National Academy of Science  September 15, 2009 vol. 106 no. 37 15961-15966 
doi: 10.1073/pnas.0903695106
[Abstract of the recent paper.]

Highlights From The Literature
Physiology 2009 24:322-324
doi:10.1152/physiol.00037.2009
[Summary of the significance of this discovery.] 


Click here for a FREE 3D see-through image of the pituitary's location that you can use in your course.

5 comments:

Unknown said...

Great info!!

Unknown said...

Thanks for keeping me informed about the another posterior pituitary hormone. Being bioidentical hormone doctor I never came across this kind of hormone.

Kevin Patton said...

New discoveries are happening so fast these days, we all need to be sharing them when we find them . . . so we can continue in our feeble attempts to "keep up."

Anonymous said...
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OMDS said...

Great explanation I've been unaware of this hormone. Keep up the good work.

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