Pituitary and Hypothalamus

Introduction to the Pituitary and Hypothalamus

Pituitary and hypothalamus utilize synaptic communication as well as
chemical communication to regulate target cells.
Pituitary and hypothalamus are the link between the nervous system and
the endocrine system.

Hypothalamus is also major regulator of body homeostasis

1. Homeostatic control includes regulating hunger, thirst, sex drive,
sleep-wake cycles and other aspects such as body temperature and
blood glucose.
2. Endocrine control via regulating the release of pituitary hormones.
3. Autonomic control via descending pathways to sympathetic and
parasympathetic preganglionic neurons.
4. Limbic function via connections to limbic system regulating emotional
behavior.
Anterior pituitary (adenohypophysis) forms from
the roof of the pharynx in the embryo.

Posterior pituitary develops from the floor of the

third ventricle forming the stalk (infundibulum)
and the posterior pituitary (neurohypophysis).

Anterior pituitary has no neurons or synapses, just

cells producing hormones such as growth hormone,
leuteinizing hormone, follicle stimulating hormone,
thyroid stimulating hormone, adrenocorticotropic
hormone.

Infundibulum contains axons from hypothalamic neurons

that project into the posterior pituitary where they
terminate near capillaries. These terminals contain
hormones oxytocin and vasopressin.
Anatomical Landmarks:
Optic chiasm
Lamina terminalis
Anterior commissure
Infundibulum
Median eminence
Pituitary
Mammillary bodies
Hypothalamic sulcus

HT is only 0.3% of brain

weight.
Organization of the Hypothalamic Nuclei

HT is typically divided into 4 regions from rostral to caudal.

1. Preoptic area: medial preoptic nucleus, lateral preoptic nucleus
2. Anterior (supraoptic) region: anterior hypothalamic nucleus, supraoptic
nucleus, paraventricular nucleus, suprachiasmatic nucleus
3. Middle (tuberal) region: arcuate nucleus, ventromedial nucleus,
dorsomedial nucleus
4. Posterior (mammillary) region: mammillary nuclei, posterior hypothalamic
nucleus
HT is also often divided into 3 regions from medial to lateral.
1. Periventricular area: periventricular nucleus
2. Medial Hypothalamic area (includes 1-4 above)
3. Lateral Hypothalamic area: lateral preoptic nucleus & lateral hypothalamic
nucleus
Hypothalamic Control of the Autonomic Nervous System

Descending projections from HT to autonomic centers:

Paraventricular nuclei > via medial forebrain bundle > dorsolateral brainstem &
periaqueductal gray area to parasympathetic & sympathetic preganglionic
neurons.

Other brainstem nuclei are also origins of descending pathways controlling

autonomic centers:
Nucleus solitarius, noradrenergic nuclei (locus coeruleus), raphe nuclei,
pontomedullary reticular formation

Inputs to HT that affect autonomic function come mostly from the amygdala
and limbic cortex.
Hypothalamic – Limbic Pathways

Details of these interconnections covered in Chapter 18; basics covered here.

Hippocampus to mammillary bodies via the fornix.

Mammillary bodies to anterior nucleus of thalamus via mammillothalamic tract.
Anterior thalamus projects to cingulate cortex.
Amygdala has reciprocal connections with HT via two pathways:
Stria terminalis
Ventral amygdalofugal pathway

Limbic – hypothalamic interconnections explain why emotional behavior is often

accompanied by autonomic activation:
blushing when embarassed
sweaty palms & dry mouth when anxious or afraid
Activation of this path could also affect other systems such as when
depressed people have weakened immune systems.
In addition, complex motivational/emotional programs are often part of
homeostatic and reproductive functions.
Functions of Selected Regions of Hypothalamus
Suprachiasmatic nucleus regulates circadian rhythms, biological clock.
GABA neurons in ventral part of lateral preoptic area function in nonREM
sleep by inhibiting histamine neurons in tuberomammillary nucleus.
Lateral HT functions in appetite; damage here produces loss of appetite.
Ventromedial nucleus of HT is thought to contain a “satiety center” that
inhibits hunger; damage here can lead to overeating/obesity.
Anterior HT contains osmoreceptors that detect blood osmolarity and when it is
high, triggers thirst
Thermoregulation involves several systems including sweat glands,
vasodilation/vasoconstriction, skeletal muscles involved in shivering
and panting, and endocrine systems that control metabolic rate.
Anterior HT detects increased body temp and activates systems of
heat dissipation; lesions here cause hyperthermia.
Posterior HT functions to conserve heat; lesions here cause
poikilothermia, where body temp matches environment temp.
More recent studies suggest HT functions in sexual desire/sex preference.
Anterior pituitary cell hormone secretion controlled by hypothalamic
releasing/release inhibiting factors from neurons in the arcuate,
periventricular, medial preoptic and paraventricular nuclei that
project to median eminence.
Factors enter hypophysial portal system and travel from median eminence
to anterior pituitary.
Hormones released from anterior pituitary cells enter circulation and travel
to target cells
Endocrine Functions of the Pituitary and Hypothalamus

Anterior pituitary hormones: adrenocorticotropic hormone, growth hormone,

prolactin, thyroid-stimulating hormone, luteinizing hormone, and
follicle-stimulating hormone.

Intermediate lobe is rudimentary in humans: pro-opiomelanocortin and

melanocyte-stimulating hormone

Posterior pituitary hormones: oxytocin, vasopressin (antidiuretic hormone)

Both also thought to be involved in other neural functions such as
pair bonding, maternal & sexual behavior, and learning (via other
pathways in brain)
Sex Hormones and the Brain

Sex hormones such as estrogen and testosterone have been

shown to affect the brains of animals.
A small nucleus in the hypothalamus is much larger in males
than females. In young males deprived of testosterone the
nucleus shrinks to the female size. In young females given
testosterone it enlarges to nearly normal male size.
Male animals deprived of testosterone show female
behaviors. Females given testosterone show male
behaviors.
The function of this nucleus is not known, but the fact that the
brain structure can be affected by sex hormones supports
the hypothesis that sexual preference may have a
neurological origin very early in life.
Gender and Sexuality

1-2% of live births have variation in alignment of genotype,

phenotype and gender.
These are in a category called intersexual.
Human sexuality is a continuum.
Sexually dimorphic regions exist in human CNS including the
hypothalamus.
Some evidence suggests that homosexual humans have small
differences in brain structures compared to heterosexuals.
Case of Bruce/Brenda

Identical XY twins born.

At 7 months, during circumcision procedure, one had penis
damaged beyond repair.
At 17 months parents agreed to sexual reassignment surgery and
treatment.
Child was then raised as a female.
Child struggled with male feelings throughout childhood.
As a teenager learned truth about sexuality and subsequently lived
as male including reconstructive surgery, marriage and
conventional life as husband and father to adopted children.
“The evidence is overwhelming that normal humans are not
psychosocially neutral at birth, but are predisposed and biased
to interact with environmental, familial, and social forces in
either a male or female mode.”
Pituitary Adenoma
Slow-growing benign tumor made up of pituitary cell type.
Common, 5% of all intracranial tumors.
Mean age of diagnosis is 40.
Most tumors secrete more than one anterior pituitary hormone.
Headache common.
Compression of optic chiasm causes bitemporal hemianopia.
50% of these tumors secrete prolactin.
15% secrete no hormone.
Symptoms: amenorrhea in women, hypogonadism in men, galactorrhea,
infertility, hair loss, decreased libido and weight gain in both sexes.
Growth hormone secreting tumors cause acromegaly, characterized by
enlarged hands and feet, coarse facial features & protruberant jaw.
Growth hormone excess in adolescence can cause giantism.
ACTH secreting tumors cause Cushing’s disease (clinical features of
glucocorticoid excess of any cause).
Cushing’s Syndrome

Moon face appearance, fat deposition on torso, acne, hirsutism, easy bruising,
poor wound healing, hypertension, diabetes, edema,
immunosuppression, osteoporosis, amenorrhea, decreased libido,
myopathy, fatigue, mania, psychosis, depression.
Diabetes Insipidus

Production of large amounts of dilute urine.

Caused by deficiency of ADH or insensitivity of kidneys to ADH.
Common causes include neurosurgery, head trauma, tumor-caused lesions
of hypothalamus/pituitary.
Neurological Cases