Anatomy

Pituitary Anatomy

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Pituitary Anatomy, Pituitary Gland, Lactotroph, Gonadotroph, Somatotroph, Corticotroph, Thyrotroph

  • See Also
  1. Neuroanatomy
  2. Intracranial Anatomy
  3. Pituitary Adenoma
  • Anatomy
  1. Pituitary Gland releases hormones with long-lasting autonomic effects
  2. Anterior Pituitary
    1. Contains no direct Neuronal connections
    2. Responds to hypothalamic hormones via portal circulation
    3. Hypothalamic hormonal stimulation results in hormone release depending on the cells involved (see below)
  3. Posterior Pituitary
    1. Releases Oxytocin and Vasopressin (ADH) produced in the Hypothalamus and stored in the posterior pituitary
  4. Images
    1. neuroPituitaryGrayBB721.gifLewis (1918) Gray's Anatomy 20th ed (in public domain at Yahoo or BartleBy)
    2. neuroPituitaryGrayBB1180.gifLewis (1918) Gray's Anatomy 20th ed (in public domain at Yahoo or BartleBy)
    3. neuroPituitaryGrayBB1181.gifLewis (1918) Gray's Anatomy 20th ed (in public domain at Yahoo or BartleBy)
  • Physiology
  • Cell types of Pituitary Gland
  1. Lactotrophs
    1. Prolactin secreting cells
  2. Gonadotrophs
    1. Luteinizing hormone (LH) secreting cells
    2. Follicle Stimulating Hormone (FSH) secreting cells
  3. Somatotroph
    1. Growth Hormone secreting cells (GH)
  4. Corticotroph
    1. Adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) secreting cells
  5. Thyrotroph
    1. Thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) secreting cells