endocrine system

Group of ductless glands that secrete hormones necessary for normal growth and development, reproduction, and homeostasis.

The major endocrine glands are the hypothalamus, pituitary, thyroid, islets of Langerhans, adrenals, parathyroids, ovaries, and testes. Secretion is regulated either by regulators in a gland that detect high or low levels of a chemical and inhibit or stimulate secretion or by a complex mechanism involving the hypothalamus and the pituitary. Tumours that produce hormones can throw off this balance. Diseases of the endocrine system result from over-or underproduction of a hormone or an abnormal response to a hormone.

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▪ anatomy

Introduction

 any of the systems found in animals for the production of hormones, substances that regulate the functioning of the organism. Such a system may range, at its simplest, from the neurosecretory, involving one or more centres in the nervous system, to the complex array of glands found in the human endocrine system.

      Comparative endocrinologists investigate the evolution of endocrine systems and the role of these systems in animals' adaptation to their environments and their production of offspring. Studies of nonmammalian animalshave provided information that has furthered research in mammalian (mammal) endocrinology, including that of humans. For example, the actions of a pituitary hormone, prolactin, on the control of body water and salt content were first discovered in fishes and later led to the demonstration of similar mechanisms in mammals. The mediating role of local ovarian secretions (paracrine function) in the maturation of oocytes (eggs) was discovered in starfishes and only later extended to vertebrates. The important role of thyroid hormones during embryonic development was first studied thoroughly in tadpoles during the early 1900s. In addition, the isolation and purification of many mammalian hormones was made possible in large part by using other vertebrates as bioassay systems; that is, primitive animals have served as relatively simple, sensitive indicators of the amount of hormone activity in extracts prepared from mammalian endocrine glands. Finally, some vertebrate and invertebrate animals have provided “model systems” for research that have yielded valuable information on the nature of hormone receptors and the mechanisms of hormone action. For example, one of the most intensively studied systems for understanding hormone actions on target tissues has been the receptors for progesterone and estrogens (hormones secreted by the gonads) from the oviducts of chickens.

      An understanding of how the endocrine system is regulated in nonmammals also provides essential information for regulating natural populations or captive animals. Artificial control of salmon reproduction has had important implications for the salmon industry as a whole. Some successful attempts at reducing pest insect species have been based on the knowledge of pheromones (pheromone). Understanding the endocrinology of a rare species may permit it to be bred successfully in captivity and thus prevent it from becoming extinct. Future research may even lead to the reintroduction of some endangered species into natural habitats.

Evolution of endocrine systems

      The most primitive endocrine systems seem to be those of the neurosecretory (neurosecretory cell) type, in which the nervous system either secretes neurohormones (neurohormone) (hormones that act on, or are secreted by, nervous tissue) directly into the circulation or stores them in neurohemal organs (neurons whose endings directly contact blood vessels, allowing neurohormones to be secreted into the circulation), from which they are released in large amounts as needed. True endocrine glands probably evolved later in the evolutionary history of the animal kingdom as separate, hormone-secreting structures. Some of the cells of these endocrine glands are derived from nerve cells that migrated during the process of evolution from the nervous system to various locations in the body. These independent endocrine glands have been described only in arthropods (where neurohormones are still the dominant type of endocrine messenger) and in vertebrates (where they are best developed).

      It has become obvious that many of the hormones previously ascribed only to vertebrates are secreted by invertebrates as well (for example, the pancreatic hormone insulin). Likewise, many invertebrate hormones have been discovered in the tissues of vertebrates, including those of humans. Some of these molecules are even synthesized and employed as chemical regulators, similar to hormones in higher animals, by unicellular animals and plants. Thus, the history of endocrinologic regulators has ancient beginnings, and the major changes that took place during evolution would seem to centre around the uses to which these molecules were put.

vertebrate endocrine systems

      Vertebrates (phylum Vertebrata) are separable into at least seven discrete classes that represent evolutionary groupings of related animals with common features. The class Agnatha, or the jawless fishes, is the most primitive group. Class Chondrichthyes and class Osteichthyes are jawed fishes that had their origins, millions of years ago, with the Agnatha. The Chondrichthyes are the cartilaginous fishes, such as sharks and rays, while the Osteichthyes are the bony fishes. Familiar bony fishes such as goldfish, trout, and bass are members of the most advanced subgroup of bony fishes, the teleosts, which developed lungs and first invaded land. From the teleosts evolved the class Amphibia, which includes frogs and toads. The amphibians gave rise to the class Reptilia, which became more adapted to land and diverged along several evolutionary lines. Among the groups descending from the primitive reptiles were turtles, dinosaurs, crocodilians (alligators, crocodiles), snakes, and lizards. Birds (class Aves) and mammals (class Mammalia) later evolved from separate groups of reptiles. Amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals, collectively, are referred to as the tetrapod (four-footed) vertebrates.

      The human endocrine system is the product of millions of years of evolution. and it should not be surprising that the endocrine glands and associated hormones of the human endocrine system have their counterparts in the endocrine systems of more primitive vertebrates. By examining these animals it is possible to document the emergence of the hypothalamic-pituitary-target organ axis, as well as many other endocrine glands, during the evolution of fishes that preceded the origin of terrestrial vertebrates.

The hypothalamic-pituitary-target organ axis

      The hypothalamic-pituitary-target organ axes of all vertebrates are similar. The hypothalamic neurosecretory system is poorly developed in the most primitive of the living Agnatha vertebrates, the hagfishes, but all of the basic rudiments are present in the closely related lampreys. In most of the more advanced jawed fishes there are several well-developed neurosecretory centres (nuclei) in the hypothalamus that produce neurohormones. These centres become more clearly defined and increase in the number of distinct nuclei as amphibians and reptiles are examined, and they are as extensive in birds as they are in mammals. Some of the same neurohormones that are found in humans have been identified in nonmammals, and these neurohormones produce similar effects on cells of the pituitary as described above for mammals.

      Two or more neurohormonal peptides with chemical and biologic properties similar to those of mammalian oxytocin and vasopressin are secreted by the vertebrate hypothalamus (except in Agnatha fishes, which produce only one). The oxytocin-like peptide is usually isotocin (most fishes) or mesotocin (amphibians, reptiles, and birds). The second peptide is arginine vasotocin, which is found in all nonmammalian vertebrates as well as in fetal mammals. Chemically, vasotocin is a hybrid of oxytocin and vasopressin, and it appears to have the biologic properties of both oxytocin (which stimulates contraction of muscles of the reproductive tract, thus playing a role in egg-laying or birth) and vasopressin (with either diuretic or antidiuretic properties). The functions of the oxytocin-like substances in nonmammals are unknown.

      The pituitary glands of all vertebrates produce essentially the same tropic hormones: thyrotropin (TSH), corticotropin (ACTH), melanotropin (MSH), prolactin (PRL), growth hormone (GH), and one or two gonadotropins (usually FSH-like and LH-like hormones). The production and release of these tropic hormones are controlled by neurohormones from the hypothalamus. The cells of teleost fishes, however, are innervated directly. Thus, these fishes may rely on neurohormones as well as neurotransmitters for stimulating or inhibiting the release of tropic hormones.

      Among the target organs that constitute the hypothalamic-pituitary-target organ axis are the thyroid, the adrenal glands, and the gonads. Their individual roles are discussed below.

The thyroid axis

      Thyrotropin secreted by the pituitary stimulates the thyroid gland to release thyroid hormones, which help to regulate development, growth, metabolism, and reproduction. In humans, these thyroid hormones are known as triiodothyronine (T₃) and thyroxine (T₄). The evolution of the thyroid gland is traceable in the evolutionary development of invertebrates to vertebrates. The thyroid gland evolved from an iodide-trapping, glycoprotein-secreting gland of the protochordates (all nonvertebrate members of the phylum Chordata). The ability of many invertebrates to concentrate iodide, an important ingredient in thyroid hormones, occurs generally over the surface of the body. In protochordates, this capacity to bind iodide to a glycoprotein and produce thyroid hormones became specialized in the endostyle, a gland located in the pharyngeal region of the head. When these iodinated proteins are swallowed and broken down by enzymes, the iodinated amino acids known as thyroid hormones are released. Larvae (larva) of primitive vertebrate lampreys also have an endostyle like that of the protochordates. When a lamprey larva undergoes metamorphosis into an adult lamprey, the endostyle breaks into fragments. The resulting clumps of endostyle cells differentiate into the separate follicles of the thyroid gland. Thyroid hormones actually direct metamorphosis in the larvae of lampreys, bony fishes, and amphibians. Thyroids of fishes consist of scattered follicles in the pharyngeal region. In tetrapods and a few fishes, the thyroid becomes encapsulated by a layer of connective tissue.

The adrenal axis

      The adrenal axes in mammals and in nonmammals are not constructed along the same lines. In mammals the adrenal cortex is a separate structure that surrounds the internal adrenal medulla; the adrenal gland is located atop the kidneys (kidney). Because the cells of the adrenal cortex and adrenal medulla do not form separate structures in nonmammals as they do in mammals, they are often referred to in different terms; the cells that correspond to the adrenal cortex in mammals are called interrenal cells, and the cells that correspond to the adrenal medulla are called chromaffin cells. In primitive nonmammals the adrenal glands are sometimes called interrenal glands.

      In fishes the interrenal and chromaffin cells often are embedded in the kidneys, whereas in amphibians they are distributed diffusely along the surface of the kidneys. Reptiles and birds have discrete adrenal glands, but the anatomical relationship is such that often the “cortex” and the “medulla” are not distinct units. Under the influence of pituitary adrenocorticotropin hormone, the interrenal cells produce steroids (usually corticosterone in tetrapods and cortisol in fishes) that influence sodium balance, water balance, and metabolism.

The gonadal (gonad) axis

      Gonadotropins secreted by the pituitary are basically LH-like and/or FSH-like in their actions on vertebrate gonads. In general, the FSH-like hormones promote development of eggs and sperm and the LH-like hormones cause ovulation and sperm release; both types of gonadotropins stimulate the secretion of the steroid hormones (steroid hormone) (androgens, estrogens, and, in some cases, progesterone) from the gonads. These steroids produce effects similar to those described for humans. For example, progesterone is essential for normal gestation in many fishes, amphibians, and reptiles in which the young develop in the reproductive tract of the mother and are delivered live. Androgens (sometimes testosterone, but often other steroids are more important) and estrogens (usually estradiol) influence male and female characteristics and behaviour.

Control of pigmentation

      Melanotropin (melanocyte-stimulating hormone, or MSH) secreted by the pituitary regulates the star-shaped cells that contain large amounts of the dark pigment melanin (melanophores), especially in the skin of amphibians as well as in some fishes and reptiles. Apparently, light reflected from the surface stimulates photoreceptors, which send information to the brain and in turn to the hypothalamus. Pituitary melanotropin then causes the pigment in the melanophores to disperse and the skin to darken, sometimes quite dramatically. By releasing more or less melanotropin, an animal is able to adapt its colouring to its background.

growth hormone and prolactin

      The functions of growth hormone and prolactin secreted by the pituitary overlap considerably, although prolactin usually regulates water and salt balance, whereas growth hormone primarily influences protein metabolism and hence growth. Prolactin allows migratory fishes such as salmon to adapt from salt water to fresh water. In amphibians, prolactin has been described as a larval growth hormone, and it can also prevent metamorphosis of the larva into the adult. The water-seeking behaviour (so-called water drive) of adult amphibians often observed prior to breeding in ponds is also controlled by prolactin. The production of a protein-rich secretion by the skin of the discus fish (called “discus milk”) that is used to nourish young offspring is caused by a prolactin-like hormone. Similarly, prolactin stimulates secretions from the crop sac of pigeons (“pigeon” or “crop” milk), which are fed to newly hatched young. This action is reminiscent of prolactin's actions on the mammary gland of nursing mammals. Prolactin also appears to be involved in the differentiation and function of many sex accessory structures in nonmammals, and in the stimulation of the mammalian prostate gland. For example, prolactin stimulates cloacal glands responsible for special reproductive secretions. Prolactin also influences external sexual characteristics such as nuptial pads (for clasping the female) and the height of the tail in male salamanders.

Other vertebrate endocrine glands

The pancreas

      The pancreas in nonmammals is an endocrine gland that secretes insulin, glucagon, and somatostatin. Pancreatic polypeptide has been identified in birds and may occur in other groups as well. Insulin lowers blood sugar (hypoglycemia) in most vertebrates, although mammalian insulin is rather ineffective in reptiles and birds. Glucagon is a hyperglycemic hormone (it increases the level of sugar in the blood).

      In primitive fishes the cells responsible for secreting the pancreatic hormones are scattered within the wall of the intestine. There is a trend toward progressive clumping of cells in more evolutionarily advanced fishes, and in a few species the endocrine tissue forms only one or a few large islets. As a rule, most fishes lack a discrete pancreas, but all tetrapods have a fully formed exocrine and endocrine pancreas. The endocrine cells of all tetrapods are organized into distinct islets as described for humans, although the abundance of the different cell types often varies. For example, in reptiles and birds there is a predominance of glucagon-secreting cells and relatively few insulin-secreting cells.

Calcium-regulating hormones

      Fishes have no parathyroid glands: these glands first appear in amphibians. Although the embryological origin of parathyroid glands of tetrapods is well known, their evolutionary origin is not. Parathyroid hormone raises blood calcium levels (hypercalcemia) in tetrapods. The absence in most fishes of cellular bone, which is the principal target for parathyroid hormone in tetrapods, is reflected by the absence of parathyroid glands.

      Fishes, amphibians, reptiles, and birds have paired pharyngeal ultimobranchial glands (ultimobranchial gland) that secrete the hypocalcemic hormone calcitonin. The corpuscles of Stannius, unique glandular islets found only in the kidneys of bony fishes, secrete a peptide called hypocalcin. Fish calcitonins differ somewhat from the mammalian peptide hormone of the same name, and fish calcitonins have proved to be more potent and have a longer-lasting action in humans than human calcitonin itself. Consequently, synthetic fish calcitonin has been used to treat humans suffering from various disorders of bone, including Paget's disease. The secretory cells of the ultimobranchial glands are derived from cells that migrated from the embryonic nervous system. During the development of a mammalian fetus, the ultimobranchial gland becomes incorporated into the developing thyroid gland as the “C cells” or “parafollicular cells.”

Gastrointestinal hormones

      Little research has been done on gastrointestinal hormones in nonmammals, but there is good evidence for a gastrinlike mechanism that controls the secretion of stomach acids. Peptides similar to cholecystokinin are also present and can stimulate contractions of the gall bladder. The gall bladders of primitive fishes contract when treated with mammalian cholecystokinin.

Other mammalian-like endocrine systems

The renin-angiotensin system

      The renin-angiotensin system in mammals is represented in nonmammals by the juxtaglomerular cells that secrete renin associated with the kidney. The macula densa that functions as a detector of sodium levels within the kidney tubules of tetrapods, however, has not been found in fishes.

The pineal complex

      In fishes, amphibians, and reptiles, the pineal complex is better developed than in mammals. The nonmammalian pineal functions as both a photoreceptor organ and an endocrine source for melatonin. Effects of light on reproduction in fishes and tetrapods are mediated at least in part through the pineal, and it has been implicated in a number of daily and seasonal biorhythmic phenomena.

Prostaglandins

      Many tissues of nonmammals produce prostaglandins that play important roles in reproduction similar to those discussed for humans and other mammals.

The liver

      As in mammals, the liver of several nonmammalian species has been shown to produce somatomedin-like growth factors in response to stimulation by growth hormone. Similarly, there is evidence that prolactin stimulates the production of a related growth factor, which synergizes (cooperates) with prolactin on targets such as the pigeon crop sac.

Unique endocrine glands in fishes

      In addition to the corpuscles of Stannius and the ultimobranchial glands, most fishes have a unique neurosecretory neurohemal organ, the urophysis, which is associated with the spinal cord at the base of the tail. Although the functions of this caudal (rear) neurosecretory system are not now understood, it is known to produce two peptides, urotensin I and urotensin II. Urotensin I is chemically related to a family of peptides that includes somatostatin; urotensin II is a member of the family of peptides that includes mammalian corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH). There are no homologous structures to either the corpuscles of Stannius or the urophysis in amphibians, reptiles, or birds.

invertebrate endocrine systems

      Advances in the study of invertebrate endocrine systems have lagged behind those in vertebrate endocrinology, largely due to the problems associated with adapting investigative techniques that are appropriate for large vertebrate animals to small invertebrates. It also is difficult to maintain and study appropriately some invertebrates under laboratory conditions. Nevertheless, knowledge about these systems is accumulating rapidly.

      All phyla in the animal kingdom that have a nervous system also possess neurosecretory neurons. The results of studies on the distribution of neurosecretory neurons and ordinary epithelial endocrine cells imply that the neurohormones were the first hormonal regulators in animals. Neurohemal organs appear first in the more advanced invertebrates (such as mollusks and annelid worms), and endocrine epithelial glands occur only in the most advanced phyla (primarily Arthropoda and Chordata). Similarly, the peptide and steroid hormones found in vertebrates are also present in the nervous and endocrine systems of many invertebrate phyla. These hormones may perform similar functions in diverse animal groups. With more emphasis being placed on research in invertebrate systems, new neuropeptides are being discovered initially in these animals, and subsequently in vertebrates.

      The endocrine systems of some animal phyla have been studied in detail, but the endocrine systems of only a few species are well known. The following discussion summarizes the endocrine systems of five invertebrate phyla and the two invertebrate subphyla of the phylum Chordata, a phylum that also includes Vertebrata, a subphylum to which the backboned animals belong.

Phylum Nemertea (ribbon worm)

      Nemertine worms are primitive marine animals that lack a coelom (body cavity) but differ from other acoelomates (animals that lack a coelom) by having a complete digestive tract. Three neurosecretory centres have been identified in the simple nemertine brain; one centre controls the maturation of the gonads, and all three appear to be involved in osmotic regulation.

Phylum Annelida (annelid)

      The cerebral ganglion (brain) of Nereis (rag worm), a marine polychaete worm, produces a small peptide hormone called nereidine, which apparently inhibits precocious sexual development. There is a complex just beneath the brain that functions as a neurohemal organ. The epithelial cells found in this complex may be secretory as well, but this has not been proved. Neurohormones are released from the infracerebral complex into the coelomic fluid through which they travel to their targets. In the lugworm, Arenicola, there is evidence for a brain neuropeptide that stimulates oocyte maturation.

Phylum Mollusca (mollusk)

      Within the phylum Mollusca, the class Gastropoda (snails, slugs) has been studied most extensively. The cerebral ganglion (brain) of several species (e.g., Euhadra peliomorpha, Aplysia californica, and Lymnaea stagnalis) secretes a neurohormone that stimulates the hermaphroditic gonad (the reproductive gland that contains both male and female characteristics); hermaphroditism is a common condition among mollusks. This gonadotropic peptide hormone (a hormone that has the gonads as its target organ) is stored in a typical neurohemal organ until its release is stimulated. For example, phototropic information detected by the so-called optic gland (located near the eye) can direct the release of the gonadotropic hormone. The gonadotropic hormones that cause egg laying in Aplysia and Lymnaea have been isolated, and they are very similar small peptides. The hermaphroditic gonad of Euhadra secretes testosterone (identical to the vertebrate testosterone), which stimulates formation of a gland that releases a pheromone for influencing mating behaviour. The optic gland of the octopus (of the class Cephalopoda) influences development of the reproductive organs on a seasonal basis. It is not known, however, whether any neurohormones are involved or whether this is purely a neurally controlled event.

Phylum Arthropoda (arthropod)

      The arthropods are the largest and most advanced group of invertebrate animals, rivaling and often exceeding the evolutionary success of the vertebrates. Indeed, the arthropods are the most successful ecological competitors of humans. There are several major subdivisions, or classes, within the phylum Arthropoda, with the largest being Insecta (insects), Crustacea (crustaceans, including crabs, crayfishes, and shrimps), and Arachnida (arachnids, including the spiders, ticks, and mites). Even within these major classes, few species have been studied. Those that have been studied are large insects (e.g., cockroaches, grasshoppers, and cecropia moths) and crustaceans.

      The organizations of arthropod endocrine systems parallel those of the vertebrate endocrine system. That is, neurohormones are produced in the arthropod brain (analogous to the vertebrate hypothalamus) and are stored in a neurohemal organ (like the vertebrate neurohypophysis). The neurohemal organ of insects may have an endocrine portion (like the vertebrate adenohypophysis), and hormones or neurohormones released from these organs may stimulate other endocrine glands as well as nonendocrine targets. A general description of the endocrine systems of insects and crustaceans is given below.

Class Insecta

      Neurosecretory, neurohemal, and endocrine structures are all found in the insect endocrine system. There are several neurosecretory centres in the brain, the largest being the pars intercerebralis. The paired corpora cardiaca (singular, corpus cardiacum) and the paired corpora allata (singular, corpus allatum) are both neurohemal organs that store brain neurohormones, but each has some endocrine cells as well. The ventral nerve cord and associated ganglia also contain neurosecretory cells and have their own neurohemal organs; i.e., the multiple perisympathetic organs located along the ventral nerve cord. The insect endocrine system produces neurohormones as well as hormones that control molting (molt), diapause, reproduction, osmoregulation, metabolism, and muscle contraction.

Molting

      A peptide neurohormone that controls molting is secreted by the pars intercerebralis and is stored in the corpora cardiaca or corpora allata (depending on the group of insects). This brain neurohormone is known as the prothoracotropic hormone (PTTH), and it stimulates the prothoracic glands (also called ecdysial or molting glands). In turn, the prothoracic glands release the steroid ecdysone, which is the actual molting hormone. Ecdysone initiates shedding of the old, hardened cuticle (exoskeleton).

      In the 1940s Sir Vincent (Brian) Wigglesworth discovered that distention of the abdomen of the blood-sucking hemipteran bug Rhodnius prolixus following consumption of a blood meal sends neural impulses to the brain and triggers the release of PTTH. A similar mechanism has been found in a herbivorous (plant-eating) hemipteran as well. Size seems to trigger molting in lepidopterans (moths, butterflies), although the mechanism is not understood. Each molt is aided by a small amount of juvenile hormone (JH) secreted by endocrine cells of the corpora allata. Without JH during a critical time of the intermolt period of the last larval stage, either a pupa stage (diapause, or a resting state) or an adult stage is achieved. Juvenile hormone also keeps the epidermis in a larval state and causes it to secrete larval cuticle. Without JH, the epidermis changes and secretes the adult cuticle type. Three different closely related forms of JH have been isolated from seven major insect orders.

diapause

      Some insects enter diapause during development. Diapause is characterized by cessation of development or reproduction, decrease in water content (dehydration), and reduction in metabolic activities. It usually is preceded by an accumulation of nutrients resulting in hypertrophy of the fat bodies. Environmental factors (such as temperature, photoperiod, and food availability) cause storage of neurohormones, and the corpora allata become inactive. Termination of diapause can be brought about by reversing the environmental conditions that induced the diapause. Although juvenile hormone can terminate diapause, it triggers diapause in some insects. The stage of the life history may be important in determining the role of JH. For example, in imaginal diapause (characterized by cessation of reproduction in the imago, or adult), the absence of JH initiates diapause. In lepidopterans, a peptide that initiates diapause has been isolated from the subesophageal ganglion.

Reproduction

      In some insects the pars intercerebralis secretes a neurohormone that stimulates vitellogenesis by the fat body (vitellogenesis is the synthesis of vitellogenin, a protein from which the oocyte makes the egg proteins). This neurohormone is stored in either the corpora cardiaca or the corpora allata, depending on the species. Uptake of vitellogenin by the ovary is enhanced by JH. In most insects, JH also stimulates vitellogenin synthesis by the fat body. There is evidence that other neurohormones secreted by the pars intercerebralis also influence reproduction. Some induce other tissues to secrete pheromones that influence reproductive behaviour of other individuals. In the live-bearing tsetse fly, Glossina, a neurohormone released from the corpora allata stimulates milk glands that provide nourishment to the developing larvae.

osmoregulation

      All insects produce a diuretic hormone and many produce an antidiuretic hormone as well. Insects feeding exclusively on a liquid diet (such as plant sap or blood) have only the diuretic hormone that allows them to eliminate excess fluid and salts through the malpighian tubules (the insect kidney). These osmoregulatory neurohormones are produced both in the brain and in the ventral nerve cord.

Myotropic and metabolic factors

      One or more small peptide neurohormones are produced in the brain and ventral nervous system and are stored in the corpora cardiaca and perisympathetic organs, respectively. These myotropic factors stimulate heart rate as well as contractions of the kidney tubules and digestive tract. The corpora cardiaca were named for the heart-stimulating action produced by extracts of these organs. The glandular portion of the corpora cardiaca is thought to secrete the hyperglycemic hormone that causes a rapid increase in blood levels of trehalose, the “blood sugar” of insects. It is sometimes called the hypertrehalosemic hormone. This hypoglycemic hormone apparently is identical to the myotropic factors in at least one species, the American cockroach. An adipokinetic neurohormone released from the orthopteran corpora cardiaca (locusts, grasshoppers) causes the release of diglycerides into the blood during, and immediately after, flight. It is a peptide similar to the myotropic factors.

Class Crustacea

      Among the crustaceans (crustacean), the major neuroendocrine system consists of the neurosecretory X-organ and its associated neurohemal organ, the sinus gland. Both an X-organ and a sinus gland are located in each eyestalk, and together they are termed the eyestalk complex. Two endocrine glands are well known: the Y-organ and the androgenic gland. As in insects, hormones and neurohormones of the crustacean regulate molting, reproduction, osmoregulation, metabolism, and heart rate. In addition, the regulation of colour changes is well developed in crustaceans, whereas only a few insects exhibit hormonally controlled colour changes.

Molting

      The steroid ecdysone secreted from the Y-organ stimulates molting. After it is released into the blood, ecdysone is converted to a 20-hydroxyecdysone, which is the active molting hormone. Secretion of ecdysone is blocked by a neurohormone called molt-inhibiting hormone, produced by the eyestalk complex. The existence of several additional molting factors has been proposed from experimental studies, and the regulation of molting may be much more complicated than suggested here.

Reproduction

      The eyestalk complex appears to produce a neurohormone that inhibits vitellogenesis by the fat body and blocks vitellogenin uptake by oocytes in the ovary. Older follicles in the ovary, however, may secrete a vitellogenin-stimulating hormone that overrides the effects of the eyestalk neurohormone. In shrimps and other crustaceans that exhibit sequential hermaphroditism, the androgenic gland produces a peptide hormone that is necessary to masculinize the gonad. These animals function first as males, and later with the degeneration of the androgenic gland they become females. Surgical removal of the androgenic gland causes a precocious change of a male to a female.

Osmoregulation

      There are four known sources of factors that influence water and ionic balance (osmoregulation) in crustaceans. The brain factor is known to regulate function of the antennal glands (paired “kidneys” (kidney) located at the base of each antenna), the intestine, and the gills. The thoracic ganglion factor affects the stomach, intestine, and gills. Both the antennal glands and the gills are affected by a factor from the eyestalk complex. Finally, the pericardial organs (neurohemal glands located in the pericardial cavity) influence salt and water metabolism by heart muscle and gills.

Myotropic factor

      Heart rate is accelerated in crustaceans by a factor released from the pericardial organs. It is not known if this factor is the same one that has osmoregulatory actions mentioned above. There is evidence to suggest that the crustacean cardioacceleratory factor is identical to one of the insect cardioacceleratory factors.

Colour changes

      Several neurohormones (neurohormone) that regulate colour changes (chromatophorotropins) by pigment cells (chromatophores) have been found in extracts of the eyestalk complex. The best known are the light-adapting hormone and the red-pigment-concentrating hormone. This latter peptide is chemically similar to the insect adipokinetic and myotropic factors. Regulation of the chromatophores allows an animal to adapt to different backgrounds by changing colours or by becoming lighter or darker.

Phylum Echinodermata (echinoderm)

      Female sea stars (starfishes (sea star)) are the only echinoderms that have been studied extensively. A neuropeptide called the gonad-stimulating substance (also called the gamete-shedding substance) is released from the radial nerves into the body cavity about one hour before spawning. Gonad-stimulating substance has been reported in more than 30 species of sea star. This neuropeptide contacts the ovaries directly and causes formation of 1-methyladenine, an inducer of oocyte maturation and spawning. This same hormone has been demonstrated in the ovaries of the closely related sea urchin, where it also promotes maturation of the oocyte.

Phylum Chordata (chordate)

      The phylum Chordata is separated into three subgroups (or subphyla). The invertebrate subphylum Tunicata consists of the marine tunicates, including the ascidians and salps. The invertebrate subphylum Cephalochordata includes the fishlike amphioxus (or lancelet). Amphioxus is a small marine animal that closely resembles the larva of the jawless fishes (class Agnatha). The subphylum Vertebrata is the largest chordate subgroup.

Subphylum Tunicata (tunicate)

      The ascidians (also called sea squirts (sea squirt)) have a tadpolelike larva that lives free for a short period. The larva eventually attaches itself to a solid substrate and undergoes a marked metamorphosis into the sessile adult sea squirt. The larva and adult have a mucus-secreting gland, the endostyle, that is believed to be the evolutionary ancestor of the vertebrate thyroid gland. Metamorphosis in ascidians can be induced by application of thyroid hormones.

      Neurosecretory neurons in the cerebral ganglion (brain) contain the vertebrate peptide gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH). Directly adjacent to the brain is the neural (or subneural) gland that may be the forerunner of the vertebrate pituitary gland. Extracts prepared from ascidian neural glands stimulate testicular growth in toads, demonstrating the presence of a gonadotropic factor in the neural gland. A protein similar to human prolactin has been found in the neural gland of Styela plicata.

Subphylum Cephalochordata (cephalochordate)

      The cephalochordate brain contains neurosecretory (neurosecretory cell) neurons that possibly are related to a structure called Hatschek's pit, located near the brain. Hatschek's pit appears to be related to the neural gland and hence to the vertebrate pituitary gland. Treatment of amphioxus with GnRH or luteinizing hormone (LH) reportedly stimulates the onset of spermatogenesis in male gonads. Furthermore, extracts prepared from Hatschek's pit can stimulate the testis of a toad. Amphioxus has a mucus-secreting endostyle like that of the ascidians. and studies have shown that the cephalochordate endostyle can synthesize thyroid hormones, too. Thus, the basic organization of the vertebrate endocrine system appears to show its early beginnings in the simple organs of these invertebrate chordates.

David O. Norris

Additional Reading

General works

A comprehensive historical and biographical survey is provided by Victor Cornelius Medvei, A History of Endocrinology (1982). Comprehensive standard texts include Leslie J. DeGroot et al. (eds.), Endocrinology, 3 vol. (1979); and Francis S. Greenspan and Peter H. Forsham (eds.), Basic & Clinical Endocrinology, 2nd ed. (1986). For modern research in the field, see Recent Progress in Hormone Research: Proceedings of the Laurentian Hormone Conference (irregular); and Current Therapy in Endocrinology and Metabolism (biennial). Peter H. Wise, Endocrinology (1986), is a useful atlas.Briefer coverage is provided in Jay Tepperman and Helen M. Tepperman, Metabolic and Endocrine Physiology: An Introductory Text, 5th ed. (1987); Robert Volpé (ed.), Autoimmunity and Endocrine Disease (1985); C. Donnell Turner and Joseph T. Bagnara, General Endocrinology, 6th ed. (1976); C.R. Kannan, Essential Endocrinology: A Primer for Nonspecialists (1986); Brian K. Follett, Susumu Ishii, and Asha Chandola (eds.), The Endocrine System and the Environment (1985); and T.S. Danowski, Outline of Endocrine Gland Syndromes, 3rd ed. (1976). A survey of medical literature can be found in The Year Book of Endocrinology.

Comparative endocrinology

David O. Norris, Vertebrate Endocrinology, 2nd ed. (1985); Ari Van Tienhoven, Reproductive Physiology of Vertebrates, 2nd ed. (1983); Kenneth C. Highnam and Leonard Hill, The Comparative Endocrinology of the Invertebrates, 2nd ed. (1977); Geoffrey W. Bennett and Saffron A. Whitehead, Mammalian Neuroendocrinology (1983); E.J.W. Barrington and C. Barker Jørgensen (eds.), Perspectives in Endocrinology: Hormones in the Lives of Lower Vertebrates (1968); and Aubrey Gorbman et al., Comparative Endocrinology (1983).Theodore B. Schwartz

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