| adrenocortical hormones | Hormone's secreted by the human adrenal cortex; e.g., cortisol, aldosterone, corticosterone. (05 Mar 2000) |
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| acute adrenocortical insufficiency | Severe adrenocortical insufficiency when an intercurrent illness or trauma causes an increased demand for adrenocortical hormones in a patient with adrenal insufficiency due to disease or use of relatively large amounts of similar hormones as therapy; characterised by nausea, vomiting, hypotension, and frequently hyperthemia, hyponatraemia, hyperkalaemia, and hypoglycaemia; can be fatal if untreated. Synonym: addisonian crisis, adrenal crisis, Bernard-Sergent syndrome. (05 Mar 2000) |
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| adrenocortical | Pertaining to suprarenal cortex. (05 Mar 2000) |
| adrenocortical adenoma | <tumour> A benign tumour of adrenal cortical cells; small unencapuslated nodules of adrenal cortex are probably localised areas of hyperplasia rather than adenoma's; true adenoma's are rare and may be symptomless or associated with Cushing's syndrome or primary aldosteronism. (05 Mar 2000) |
| adrenocortical insufficiency | Loss, to varying degrees, of adrenocortical function. Synonym: hypocorticoidism. (05 Mar 2000) |
| partial adrenocortical insufficiency | Normal basal adrenocortical function with failure of adrenocortical reserve to respond to ACTH stimulation. (05 Mar 2000) |
| chronic adrenocortical insufficiency | Adrenocortical insufficiency usually as the result of idiopathic atrophy or destruction of both adrenal glands by tuberculosis, an autoimmune process, or other diseases; characterised by fatigue, decreased blood pressure, weight loss, increased melanin pigmentation of the skin and mucous membranes, anorexia, and nausea or vomiting; without appropriate replacement therapy, it can progress to acute adrenocortical insufficiency. Synonym: Addison's disease, addisonian syndrome, hyposupradrenalism, morbus Addisonii. (05 Mar 2000) |
| primary adrenocortical insufficiency | Adrenocortical insufficiency caused by disease, destruction, or surgical removal of the adrenal cortices. (05 Mar 2000) |
| secondary adrenocortical insufficiency | Adrenocortical insufficiency caused by failure of ACTH secretion resulting from anterior pituitary disease or inhibition of ACTH production resulting from exogenous steroid therapy. (05 Mar 2000) |
| latent adrenocortical insufficiency | Adrenocortical insufficiency not clinically evident but which can become severe if a sudden stress, such as an intercurrent acute illness, develops. (05 Mar 2000) |
| adrenomedullary hormones | Hormones produced by the adrenal medulla, particularly the catecholamines epinephrine and norepinephrine. (05 Mar 2000) |
| pancreatic hormones | Peptide hormones secreted into the blood by cells in the islets of langerhans of the pancreas. The alpha cells secrete glucagon; the beta cells secrete insulin; the delta cells secrete somatostatin; and the pp cells secrete pancreatic polypeptide. (12 Dec 1998) |
| gastrointestinal hormones | Hormones that originate in and regulate motor and secretory activity of the digestive organs. (12 Dec 1998) |
| parathyroid hormones | Polypeptide hormones (84 amino acid residues) secreted by the parathyroid glands, which promote release of calcium from bone to extracellular fluid by activating osteoblasts and inhibiting osteoclasts, indirectly promote increased intestinal absorption of calcium, and promote renal tubular reabsorption of calcium and increased renal excretion of phosphates. It is a major regulator of bone metabolism. Secretion of parathyroid hormone increases when the level of calcium in the extracellular fluid is low. Its action is opposed by calcitonin. (12 Dec 1998) |
| vertebrate hormones | Hormones synthesised in vertebrates. (05 Mar 2000) |
| glycoprotein hormones, alpha subunit | A non-covalently bound subunit of the glycoprotein hormones tsh, fsh, lh, and hcg which originates in the anterior pituitary gland and placenta. This subunit is virtually identical in structure and indistinguishable by radioimmunoassay in all of the above glycoproteins. It is present in both men and women, but is elevated in postmenopausal women and in patients with hypothyroidism, uraemia and malignant tumours. The alpha subunit may be involved directly in recognition of certain receptors. (12 Dec 1998) |