Hypothalamus: Regulatory Hormones

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Hormones from hypothalamus are called regulatory hormones because they are molecules secreted into the blood to regulate the secretion of the anterior pituitary hormones. There are two groups of regulatory hormones. Group one is called releasing hormones which stimulate the production and secretion of the anterior pituitary hormones. Group two is called inhibiting hormones which deter the production and secretion of the anterior pituitary hormones. In this writing assignment we are focusing on releasing hormones. The hypothalamus consists of interconnecting neurons. Neurotransmitters, made up by a transmission of an electrical impulse and the secretion of a chemical substance, diffuses across the synapse of a presynaptic membrane on one neuron to the postsynaptic membrane of another neuron (Utiger, 2014). When a specific …show more content…

There are five hypothalamic hormones that stimulate the anterior pituitary and are called tropic hormones. The first is called Thyrotropin-releasing Hormone (TRH) which increases the secretion of thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) and stimulates the release of thyroid hormone from the thyroid gland. The second is Prolactin-releasing hormone (PRH) which increases the secretion of prolactin (PRL) and primarily regulates breast milk in women. Gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) is the third and it increases the secretion of the follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) and luteinizing hormone (LH) which regulates the production and maturation of sperm and oocytes as well as hormonal synthesis by the gonads. The fourth hormone is called Corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH) which increases the secretion of adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) that stimulates the adrenal cortex to produce and secrete corticosteroid hormones. An example of a corticosteroid hormone is cortisol. Lastly, the fifth hormone is the Growth hormone-releasing hormone (GHRH) which increases the secretion of growth hormone (GH) that stimulates cell growth throughout the

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