JSCC ENDO

What are the major differences between the nervous system and the endocrine systems? Are
these completely separate systems or are there overlaps between them? Explain.
2. What is homeostasis? Explain some of the ways the endocrine system affects homeostasis.
3. Explain the difference between an endocrine gland and an exocrine gland. Can a gland be both
an exocrine gland and endocrine gland? Give some examples of glands that fit this description.
4. Where is the pituitary gland located? What part of the pituitary is the neurohypophysis? What
part is the adenohypophysis? What is the infundibulum of the pituitary?
5. Where are the secretions of the neurohypophysis produced? What are the two major
secretions of the neurohypophysis? What causes the release of these secretions by the
neurohypophysis?
6. What is the relationship between the hypothalamus and the anterior pituitary gland? What
causes the release of hormones from the anterior pituitary? What enables the hypothalamus
and the anterior pituitary gland to communicate with one another?
7. For each of the following, determine the hormone(s) produced and the target organs (or cells or
tissues) of each of these hormones.
a. Thyroid gland follicular cells
b. Thyroid gland parafollicular cells
c. Thymus gland
d. Adrenal medulla
e. Adrenal cortex
f. Pancreas
g. Anterior pituitary
h. Parathyroid gland
i. Posterior pituitary
j. Hypothalamus
k. Testes
l. Ovaries – follicles
m. Ovaries – corpus luteum
8. Name the organ that you would expect to find each of the following in:
a. Thyroglobulin
b. Chromaffin cells
c. Colloid
d. Leydig cells
e. Alpha cells
f. Beta cells
g. Hypophyseal portal system
h. Tropes (mammotropes, somatotropes, etc.)

9. Explain how insulin and glucagon can be considered to have antagonistic effects. What would
happen if insulin were the only hormone available to help regulate blood glucose levels? Are
there any other pairs of hormones that you can think of that have antagonistic effects? Name
those please.
10. Name several steroid hormones. What do these have in common in terms of structure and
function? What endocrine glands produce most of these steroids?
11. What chemical characteristics are shared in common by the steroid hormones? How do these
chemical characteristics affect the way in which these molecules work in the body? Be able to
explain exactly what happens when a steroid hormone arrives at a target cell. Where does the
hormone finally wind up in the target cell? What does it do when it gets there?
12. Nonsteroidal hormones (amines, peptides, glycoproteins, and proteins) act relatively quickly
once they arrive at a target cell. There is no or little lag in their activity. Why is this true of
peptide and glycopeptide hormones?
13. What is the importance of cholesterol to the structure and function of steroid hormones?
14. Thyroid hormone (T3) produces a calorigenic effect. What is the calorigenic effect?
15. What is a glucose-sparing effect? What hormone(s) are most notable for eliciting a glucose-
sparing effect?
16. Some hormones are helpful in dealing with stress. If stress happens because of something
happen over short time period your body can be prepared to deal with it through the secretion
of norepinephrine and epinephrine from the adrenal ____________. What if the stress of long-
term (weeks, months, years perhaps). What hormone would help to deal with that? (Hint: This
is a glucocorticoid from the adrenal ____________. It is sometimes called the “stress hormone”
because it is so important.)
17. What is the difference between enzyme (signal) amplification and up-regulation?
18. Name a secondary messenger involved in enzyme (signal) amplification. What kinds of
hormones would you generally expect to elicit enzyme amplification through a secondary
messenger?
19. What micronutrient (an element ultimately coming from minerals in the environment) is
important in thyroxine synthesis? What amino acid is important in the synthesis of thyroxine?
What is the relationship between T4 and T3?
20. Hydrophilic, polar hormones are usually free hormones in the blood. Hydrophobic, nonpolar
hormones are usually bound hormones in the blood. What is the difference between a bound
versus a free hormone?
21. What is specificity of hormone function? What determines the specificity of a hormone? (Hint:
Hormones like GH, T3, and insulin have body-wide effects while hormones like ACTH, TSH, and
calcitonin mainly affect only a single kind of cell. How can some hormones have an effect on
such a wide range of cell types while other only affect a single cell type?)
22. Dysfunction involving endocrine organs can lead to serious disorders in humans. For the
following list of disorder/diseases

23. Briefly describe the symptoms and explain the cause(s) of each of the following endocrine disorders:
a. Grave’s Disease b. Hashimoto’s Disease c. Diabetes Mellitus
d. Pituitary gigantism d. Pituitary dwarfism e. Simple Goiter
f. Excessive bone loss due to an endocrine disorder (what endocrine gland and hormone would be
involved).
g. Excessive bone deposition due to an endocrine disorder (what endocrine gland and hormone would
be involved).
h. Cushing Syndrome
i. Addison’s Disease
Blood
1. What is viscosity? What components of the blood contribute to its viscosity?
2. What is the difference between plasma and serum? What are the components of plasma?
3. Proteins in the blood include albumins, globulins, and fibrinogen. What are the functions of these
proteins? Where are they produced?
4. A person whose diet is deficient in protein may exhibit edema. What is edema? How can a
sufficient intake of protein help to prevent edema?
5. Identify the different formed elements in the blood. Define or describe each of the following:
a. Erythrocytes
b. Neutrophils
c. Basophils
d. Eosinophils
e. Monocytes
f. Lymphocytes
g. Platelets
2. What are some of the ways in which the circulatory system contributes to homeostasis?
3. What are the sources of the different formed elements in the blood? What is the technical term for
the process of blood formation?

4. What kinds of things are measured when a person has their hematocrit checked?
5. Blood is a liquid connective tissue. What does this mean? Specifically, what is it that makes this a
connective tissue?
6. Erythrocytes lack nuclei and other organelles. What advantage might this provide? What sort of
limitations does this impose on erythrocytes? In other words, what can’t they do if they lack nuclei
and other organelles?
7. What is hypoxemia? What are some of the causes of hypoxemia? How does hypoxemia affect
erythropoiesis?
8. Where do old worn out RBCs get broken down? What are some of the uses of the parts released
following the destruction of RBCs?
9. What is anemia? What are three general causes of anemia? What are some nutritional
supplements one could take to stimulate increased erythropoiesis?
10. What is it about an RBC that is important in determining a person’s blood type? What is the logic
behind using antibodies to determine a person’s blood type?
11. In the ABO blood grouping system, what are the different possible blood types that people can
have?
12. Leukopoiesis is the production of leukocytes (WBCs).
13. Hemostasis is the cessation of bleeding. What are the events that take place in hemostasis? What
are some of the roles of platelets in this process?
14. Sometimes thrombus (clot) formation is dangerous. What might happen if a person forms a blood
clot that lodges in a blood vessel serving a vital organ (a lung, for example)? What are some things
that might be done to reduce the probably of clot formation?
15. What is the difference between primary and secondary polycythemia? How would polycythemia
affect the viscosity of the blood? Blood pressure? Osmotic pressure (i.e., tendency to take up water
from the surroundings) of the blood?
16. What is the importance of intrinsic factor in the process of blood formation? Besides intrinsic factor,
what are some other nutritional factors influencing blood formation?
17. What are bilirubin and biliverdin?
18. What role does the spleen have in RBC processing?
19. What kinds of leukocytes are phagocytic?
20. Where are platelets formed?
21. What is hemolytic disease of the newborn? What drug can be administered to help prevent this?
22. What blood type is a universal donor? Which type, O+ or O-, would be least likely to cause
agglutination in a recipient? What the heck is agglutination?
23. What antibodies would you expect to find in the plasma of a type O individual? Of a type AB
individual? Why are type AB individuals universal recipients rather than being donors?