pituitary gland
a small, somewhat cherry-shaped double structure attached by a stalk to the base of the brain and constituting the master endocrine gland affecting all hormonal functions in the body, consisting of an anterior region (anterior pituitary, oradenohypophysis ) that develops embryonically from the roof of the mouth and that secretes growth hormone, LH, FSH, ACTH, TSH, and MSH, a posterior region (posterior pituitary, orneurohypophysis ) that develops from the back of the forebrain and that secretes the hormones vasopressin and oxytocin, and an intermediate part (pars intermedia ), derived from the anterior region but joined to the posterior region, that secretes the hormone MSH in lower vertebrates.
Origin of pituitary gland
1- Also called hypophysis.
Words Nearby pituitary gland
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use pituitary gland in a sentence
The two scientists cultured immature rabbit eggs for about a day, supplementing the nutrient broth either with extracts from cow pituitary glands or with an unspecified “maturity hormone.”
Solving mysteries of reproduction helped make parenthood possible for millions | Robin Marantz Henig | June 9, 2021 | Science NewsOthers who, because of a tumor in the pituitary gland, may overproduce HGH develop a different problem: gigantism.
Is HGH, Allegedly Alex Rodriguez’s Drug of Choice, Really So Bad? | Kent Sepkowitz | August 1, 2013 | THE DAILY BEASTHGH is a hormone normally made in tiny amounts by the pituitary gland in all of us.
Where Were the Doctors to Testify at Roger Clemens’s Perjury Trial? | Kent Sepkowitz | June 20, 2012 | THE DAILY BEASTI want a ball bat to club every country jake doctor that looks me over and asks about my pituitary gland.
David Lannarck, Midget | George S. HarneyLong ago we learned that the pituitary gland influenced growth and development.
The Goat-gland Transplantation | Sydney B. Flower
Goldstein reported a case of gigantism from overactivity of the pituitary gland after castration.
The Ethics of Medical Homicide and Mutilation | Austin O'MalleyIt has been found that an abnormality quite like brachydactyly is produced by abnormality in the pituitary gland.
Applied Eugenics | Paul Popenoe and Roswell Hill JohnsonIt is then fair to suppose that the factor which produces brachydactyly does so by affecting the pituitary gland in some way.
Applied Eugenics | Paul Popenoe and Roswell Hill Johnson
British Dictionary definitions for pituitary gland
the master endocrine gland, attached by a stalk to the base of the brain. Its two lobes (the adenohypophysis and neurohypophysis) secrete hormones affecting skeletal growth, development of the sex glands, and the functioning of the other endocrine glands: Also called: hypophysis, hypophysis cerebri See also adenohypophysis, neurohypophysis
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Scientific definitions for pituitary gland
[ pĭ-tōō′ĭ-tĕr′ē ]
A gland at the base of the brain in vertebrate animals that is divided into two regions, anterior and posterior, each of which secretes important hormones. The anterior portion, whose secretions are directly controlled by the hypothalamus, produces hormones that regulate the function of most of the body's hormone-producing glands and organs, including the thyroid and adrenal glands. Growth hormone is also produced by the anterior pituitary. The posterior pituitary releases antidiuretic hormone (ADH) and oxytocin.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Cultural definitions for pituitary gland
[ (pi-tooh-uh-ter-ee) ]
A small gland, attached to the base of the brain and controlled by the hypothalamus, that functions in the endocrine system. The pituitary gland secretes many hormones: some control the actions of other glands, whereas others influence growth, metabolism, and reproduction.
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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