Describe hormone, its effect on target cell, chemical nature of hormone and feedback system
Hormone is
specialized chemical messenger that an endocrime gland produces and secretes.
Hormones circulate through body fluids and affect the metabolic activity of a
target cell in a specific way. By definition a target cell has receptors to
which chemical messengers either relatively bind or on which they have an
effect. Only rarely does a hormone operate independently one hormone
influences, depends on and balances another hormone in a controlled feedback
network.
In the target
cell, hormones help, control biochemical reactions in three ways:
(1) A hormone
can increase the rate of other substances enter or leave the cell.
(2) It can
stimulate a target cell to synthesize enzymes, proteins or other substances.
(3) It can
promote a target cell to activate or suppress existing cellular enzymes.
Biochemistry of
Hormones:
Most hormones
are proteins (Polypeptides), derivates of amino acids (amines) or steroids. Few
are fatty acid derivates. For example most invertebrate neuro secretary cells
produce polypeptides called neuropeptides.
Hormones that
vertebrate pancreas secretes are proteins, those that the thyroid gland
secretes are amines. The ovaries, testes and cortex of the adrenal glands
secrete steroids.
Hormones are
effective in extremely small amount. Only few molecules of a hormone may be
enough to produce a dramatic response in a target cell. In target cell hormones
help control biochemical reactions in three ways. A hormone can increase the
rate at which other substances enter or leave the cell. It can stimulate a
target cell to synthesize enzymes, proteins or other substances. It can prompt
a target cell to activate or suppress existing cellular enzymes. As is the case
for enzyme, hormones are not changed by the reaction they regulate.
Feedback
mechanism:
You are already
familiar with the concept of feedback mechanism in hoemeostasis. Likewise,
hormonal secretion is also subjected to feedback mechanism. In case of any
change in chemical information of the body, feedback mechanism comes into
action and either blocks or promotes further change. The feedback is said to be
negative feedback if further secretion of hormone is inhabited. In positive
feedback an increase in concentration of a secreted hormone facilitates the
process of its further secretion.
The check and balance mechanism in the body
is termed as feedback mechanism. As soon as any change in any substance of
internal environment takes place, it is detected usually by special organs
called receptors and immediately reported to a control centre (e.g. brain in
higher animals) which decides about appropriate response and consequently it
sends its instructions accordingly to some other organ called effector which
could play its role in bringing the target substance back to normal. It has
observed that there could be negative as well as positive feedback.
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