The relationship between Cardiovascular System and the Functioning of the Endocrine System

QUESTION

Discuss:After exploring the content for this module, you should be ready to discuss the topics at a deeper level with your classmates. As a future medical professional, you should be able to explain how the cardiovascular system assists in the functioning of the endocrine system and discuss some frequent clinical conditions of the endocrine system, the blood, and the heart.

Discuss: After exploring the content for this module, you should be ready to discuss the topics at a deeper level with your classmates. As a future medical professional, you should be able to explain how the cardiovascular system assists in the functioning of the endocrine system and discuss some frequent clinical conditions of the endocrine system, the blood, and the heart.

Instructions
1. In a post of at least 300 words, respond to the following:
  1. Compare the pathway for synthesis and delivery of anterior vs posterior pituitary hormones.
  2. Discuss the conduits that deliver these hormones to their targets.
  3. Trace the pathways by which hormones will take to reach all bodily tissues (i.e., head, fingers, toes, viscera).
  4. Predict possible medical conditions that can arise if the endocrine and cardiovascular systems failure to work with each other to maintain homeostasis. Discuss possible anatomical and physiological changes in the body.
Solution:

The endocrine system is composed of a collection of glands that produce hormones. These hormones are responsible for regulating various functions in the body including metabolism, sleep, growth, reproduction, mood, and others. The cardiovascular system works with the endocrine system by transporting hormones to their targeted cells through the bloodstream (OpenStax 2016). This system is composed of the heart, blood vessels, and blood. Circulatory pathways run throughout the body (shown in the image below). Once hormones enter the blood stream they dissolve into plasma and then use the circulatory pathways to travel to bodily tissues. Each tissue has receptors that only respond to the particular hormones it needs. When they bind together it initiates reactions that affect function (Visible Body, 2020).

One gland in the endocrine system is the pituitary gland. The pituitary gland controls most of the hormone-secreting glands and regulates vital bodily functions. It is often referred to as the master gland of the endocrine system (Bradford, 2017). The pituitary gland is the size of a pea and is located in the brain, behind the bridge of the nose, between the hypothalamus and the pineal gland. The hypothalamus controls the pituitary gland by sending signals that control the production and release of more hormones from the pituitary gland (The Pituitary Foundation, 2018). The hormones from the pituitary gland are released into the bloodstream through the capillary plexus where it is transported to its target. There are two lobes in the pituitary gland; the posterior and anterior pituitaries.

The posterior pituitary is composed of neural tissue and functions to store and secrete hormones that are produced by the hypothalamus (OpenStax, 2016). It does not produce any hormones, unlike the anterior pituitary. Oxytocin and antidiuretic hormones are released at the hypothalamus. They then travel along axons, into the posterior pituitary, where they are stored in axon terminals. The hormones are released into the bloodstream via the capillary plexus when responding to signals from hypothalamic neurons. (OpenStax, 2016)

The anterior pituitary is composed of glandular tissue and originates from the digestive tract. It produces seven different hormones: growth hormone, prolactin, thyroid-stimulating hormone, adrenocorticotropic hormone, follicle-stimulating hormone, luteinizing hormone, and antidiuretic hormone (OpenStax, 2016). These hormones are regulated by hypothalamus hormones that send the signals to either stimulate or inhibit the secretion of hormones from the anterior pituitary. Hormones from the hypothalamus are released by neurons, then transported by blood vessels through a capillary plexus and into the anterior pituitary. The hormones produced by the anterior pituitary go through a second capillary plexus to enter into the bloodstream (OpenStax, 2016).

When the endocrine and circulatory systems fail to maintain homeostasis then medical conditions may arise. The endocrine system relies on the circulatory system to transport hormones to various parts of the body. Hormone homeostasis is controlled by the endocrine’s feedback system that sends signals to the proper gland to adjust hormone secretion or inhibition. If this feedback system is disrupted, then the right hormone levels cannot be maintained in the bloodstream. For example, if the thyroid produces too much thyroid hormone, this secretes into the bloodstream. This may cause the body’s metabolism to accelerate which leads to weight loss.

Colburn Law. (2020). How Does a Brain Injury Cause Pituitary Gland Damage? Retrieved from https://www.colburnlaw.com/how-does-a-brain-injury-cause-pituitary-gland-damage/

Bradford, A. (2017). Pituitary Gland: Facts, Function & Disease. Retrieved from https://www.livescience.com/58885-pituitary-gland.html

The Pituitary Foundation. (2018). What is the pituitary gland? Retrieved from https://www.pituitary.org.uk/information/what-is-the-pituitary-gland/

Visible Body (2020). Endocrine Hormones. Retrieved from https://www.visiblebody.com/learn/endocrine/hormones

Subject	Biology	Pages	4	Style	APA

Answer

- The relationship between Cardiovascular System and the Functioning of the Endocrine System
  
  The endocrine system comprises an assemblage of various glands that produce several hormones responsible for regulating different body functions like metabolism, sleep, growth, reproduction, and mood swings. On the other hand, the cardiovascular system – which consists of heart blood, vessels, and blood – coordinates with the endocrine system to aid in the transportation of the hormones to their target locations. Therefore, this paper seeks to elucidate how the cardiovascular system assists in the functioning of the endocrine system; by comparing the pathways for the synthesis and delivery of anterior and posterior pituitary hormone, conduits for hormone delivery, pathways in hormonal transportation. Consequently, it provides possible clinical conditions associated with cardiovascular and endocrine systems.
  
  There are significant variations in the pathway for synthesis and delivery of anterior and posterior pituitary hormones. Anterior pituitary hormones are synthesized in the digestive tract (OpenStax, 2016). Subsequently, the delivery of anterior pituitary hormones is triggered by signals from the hypothalamus and transported by the blood through capillary plexus into the bloodstream. In contrast, the synthesis of posterior pituitary hormones occurs in the hypothalamus (OpenStax, 2016). They are store in the axons of the glands before being delivered into the bloodstream through capillary plexus.
  
  The aforementioned hormones are delivered to their particular targets through capillary plexus. These are capillary blood vessels located at the boundary of the inner plexiform layer and inner nuclear layer (Nesper & Fawzi, 2018). Additionally, the pathway in which the hormones reach bodily tissues is the circulation pathway. It runs through the body when the plasma with the bloodstream, the tissue receptors, re-joins their specific hormones. Consequently, the response leads to a reaction, hence, effectiveness (Visible Body, 2020).
  
  The possible medical conditions caused by the endocrine and cardiovascular system’s failure to maintain the homeostasis are stunted growth and reproduction failure, including diabetes. Such conditions may accelerate the body’s metabolism and weight loss, physiologically and anatomically, respectively.

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References

Nesper, P. L., & Fawzi, A. A. (2018). Human parafoveal capillary vascular anatomy and connectivity revealed by optical coherence tomography angiography. Investigative ophthalmology & visual science, 59(10), 3858-3867.

Visible Body (2020). Endocrine Hormones. Retrieved from https://www.visiblebody.com/learn/endocrine/hormones