1.

Compare and contrast hormones based on their signal transduction

properties

Signal transduction refers to how information is transmitted from one side

of the cell membrane to the other via membrane proteins. Depending on
that, hormones can be classified into 4 types: Peptide, Steroid,
Catecholamines, and Thyroid hormones (though Catecholamines and
Thyroid hormones are both tyrosine derivatives). The differences are
similarities between them are listed below:
Peptide and catecholamine hormones: These 2 types of hormones are very
similar to one another. Both are water-soluble messengers, so they cannot
enter the cells, and can only bind to receptors on the cell membrane. To
exert their effect, they must activate second messengers within the cells.
That is why it takes longer for them to exert effects. The changes they both
cause within the cell involve modifying existing proteins. Additionally,
peptide hormones can also form new proteins. Examples of peptide
hormones are growth hormone, antidiuretic hormone, etc; examples of
catecholamine hormones are epinephrine, dopamine, etc.
Steroid and thyroid hormones: these hormones are similar to each other
but they differ greatly from peptide and catecholamine hormones. For
starters, these hormones are lipid-soluble, so they can enter cells hassle-
free, that’s why they can exert their effects faster compared to peptide or
catecholamines. Steroid hormones have receptors on the cell membrane,
cytoplasm, or nucleus and thyroid hormones mainly have receptors on the
nucleus. The changes they cause to the cell include activating genes to
carry out transcription and translation of proteins. Examples of steroid
hormones are cortisol,estrogen, etc; examples of thyroid hormones are
thyroxine, triiodothyronine