Allergic Responses and Hormonal Control of Reproduction

What triggers allergic responses?

Specific antigens.

What is an allergy?

An inflammatory immune response to a nonpathogenic antigen, also called sensitivity or hypersensitivity.

What characterizes immediate hypersensitivity reactions?

They are mediated by antibodies and occur within minutes.

What characterizes delayed hypersensitivity reactions?

They are mediated by helper T cells and macrophages and may take several days to develop.

What are the effects of anaphylaxis?

Vasodilation and heart muscle depression.

How do people express antibodies related to RBC antigens?

People express antibodies to the RBC antigens they do not possess.

What is neuroimmunomodulation?

The study of brain-immune interactions.

What can alter the function of immune cells?

Hormones and neuropeptides.

How can cytokines from the immune system affect neuroendocrine function?

Cytokines can influence neuroendocrine function.

What is the anterior pituitary?

A true endocrine gland controlled by hypothalamic neurons releasing neurohormones into the portal system.

What hormones are released by the anterior pituitary?

Trophic hormones that act on target organs.

What is the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonad axis?

A hormonal control system involving GnRH from the hypothalamus, LH and FSH from the pituitary, and sex steroid hormones from the gonads.

What is the dominant hormone of the follicular phase of the menstrual cycle?

Estrogen.

What triggers follicular growth in the early follicular phase?

FSH (Follicle-Stimulating Hormone).

What happens during ovulation?

Release of the egg from the dominant follicle, triggered by the LH surge.

What is the dominant hormone of the luteal phase?

Progesterone.

What occurs if there is no pregnancy during the late luteal phase?

The corpus luteum undergoes apoptosis, leading to a decrease in estrogen and progesterone.

What are the stages of the uterine cycle?

Menses, proliferative phase, and secretory phase.

What prepares the uterus for egg implantation during the proliferative phase?

Estrogen during mid- to late follicular phase.

What does progesterone do during the secretory phase?

It prepares the endometrium with secretory glands and vascularization for nourishment.

What happens during menses?

Decrease in progesterone leads to sloughing off of the endometrium.