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antidiuretic hormone

(Encyclopedia)antidiuretic hormone ănˌtēdīyo͞orĕtˈĭk [key], polypeptide hormone secreted by the posterior pituitary gland. Its principal action is to regulate the amount of water excreted by the kidneys. An...

gonadotropic hormone

(Encyclopedia)gonadotropic hormone gōˌnădətrŏpˈĭk [key] or gonadotropin, any one of three glycoprotein (see protein) hormones released by either the anterior pituitary gland or the placenta (the organ in whi...

acromegaly

(Encyclopedia)acromegaly ăkˌrōmĕgˈəlē [key], adult endocrine disorder resulting from hypersecretion of growth hormone produced by the pituitary gland. Since the bones cannot increase in length after full gro...

Guillemin, Roger Charles Louis

(Encyclopedia)Guillemin, Roger Charles Louis gēyəmăNˈ [key], 1924–, French-American physiologist, b. Dijon, France. Educated in France, he fought for the resistance during World War II. He taught primarily at...

cortisol

(Encyclopedia)cortisol kôrˈtĭsôlˌ [key] or hydrocortisone, steroid hormone that in humans is the major circulating hormone of the cortex, or outer layer, of the adrenal gland. Like cortisone, cortisol is class...

oxytocin

(Encyclopedia)oxytocin ŏksĭtōˈsĭn [key], hormone released from the posterior lobe of the pituitary gland that facilitates uterine contractions and the milk-ejection reflex. The structure of oxytocin, a cyclic ...

thyroxine

(Encyclopedia)thyroxine thīrŏkˈsēn [key], substance secreted by the thyroid gland. The hormone thyroxine forms by combining the amino acid tyrosine with iodine. Complexed to a protein, it is stored in the folli...

adrenocorticotropic hormone

(Encyclopedia)adrenocorticotropic hormone ədrēˈnōkôrˌtəkōtrŏpˈĭk [key], polypeptide hormone secreted by the anterior pituitary gland. Its chief function is to stimulate the cortex of the adrenal gland to...

Funk, Casimir

(Encyclopedia)Funk, Casimir kăzˈĭmēr fo͝ongk [key], 1884–1967, American biochemist, b. Poland, Ph.D. Univ. of Bern, 1904. He first came to the United States in 1915 and was naturalized in 1920. Credited with...

endorphins

(Encyclopedia)endorphins ĕndôrˈfĭnz [key], neurotransmitters found in the brain that have pain-relieving properties similar to morphine. There are three major types of endorphins: beta endorpins, found primaril...