JASIMAH P.

GUTOC NE-1

1. Explain how the nervous and endocrine systems differ in (a) the rate of their control, (b) the way
in which they communicate with body cells, and (c) the types of body processes they control.
In terms of the rate of control, the nervous system is more rapid as compared to the endocrine
system because it uses electrical impulses that are able to travel quickly along the interconnected
neurons of the body thus, allowing its message to be sent immediately to the effector organs or cells.
On the other hand, it may take several period of time for the endocrine system to bring about its effects
as it makes use of hormones that still has to travel in the blood for it to be able to reach its target organ.

These two systems also differ in the type of body processes they control. The usual body
processes that the nervous system controls are immediate and short-term responses such as reflex and
the act of processing and recognizing information around us. In contrast, the endocrine system is more
focused on maintaining various body processes that continuously go on for a long period of time (e.g.
metabolism, growth, regulating blood nutrient levels, etc.).

2. The posterior pituitary is not really an endocrine gland. Why not? What is it?
The posterior pituitary is not really an endocrine gland as it is an extension of the brain and is
made up of nerve cells. Moreover, it does not secrete its own hormones unlike the anterior pituitary.
The hormones that are derived from it, the antidiuretic hormone and the oxytocin, are actually
synthesized by specialized neurons in the brain’s hypothalamus and are kept within the posterior
pituitary until a stimulation from the neurons will instruct for its secretion. With this, one can say that
the posterior pituitary is a storage, not a gland, for the synthesized hormones of the hypothalamus.

3. Explain how calcitonin, parathyroid hormone, and vitamin D are involved in maintaining blood
calcium levels. What happens when too little or too much parathyroid hormone is secreted?

These three—calcitonin, parathyroid hormone, and vitamin D—play individual, yet

interconnected, roles in maintaining the blood calcium levels. As for the vitamin D, it is primarily
concerned for stimulating the calcium absorption of the intestinal epithelial cells and its final stage of
synthesis is actually stimulated by the parathyroid hormone.

The parathyroid hormone regulates the blood calcium levels by increasing it when the blood
calcium levels are low and decreasing the levels when it is high. The calcitonin, on the other hand, acts
to reduce the blood calcium levels. This means that if there is a high level of blood calcium, there is also
an increase of calcitonin level whereas a low blood calcium level entails a decreased calcitonin level.

When there is an extremely low PTH secretion, hypothyroidism may occur and this usually results
to a reduced rate of bone reabsorption thus, decreasing blood calcium levels. When PTH secretion is too
high, hyperthyroidism happens wherein there is an increased rate of bone reabsorption which in turn
elevates the blood calcium levels to a great extent. With this, softening and weakening of the bones are
more likely to be evident.