Related Research Articles
The hypothalamus is a small part of the vertebrate brain that contains a number of nuclei with a variety of functions. One of the most important functions is to link the nervous system to the endocrine system via the pituitary gland. The hypothalamus is located below the thalamus and is part of the limbic system. It forms the basal part of the diencephalon. All vertebrate brains contain a hypothalamus. In humans, it is about the size of an almond.
Thirst is the craving for potable fluids, resulting in the basic instinct of animals to drink. It is an essential mechanism involved in fluid balance. It arises from a lack of fluids or an increase in the concentration of certain osmolites, such as sodium. If the water volume of the body falls below a certain threshold or the osmolite concentration becomes too high, structures in the brain detect changes in blood constituents and signal thirst.
The supraoptic nucleus (SON) is a nucleus of magnocellular neurosecretory cells in the hypothalamus of the mammalian brain. The nucleus is situated at the base of the brain, adjacent to the optic chiasm. In humans, the SON contains about 3,000 neurons.
The paraventricular nucleus is a nucleus in the hypothalamus. Anatomically, it is adjacent to the third ventricle and many of its neurons project to the posterior pituitary. These projecting neurons secrete oxytocin and a smaller amount of vasopressin, otherwise the nucleus also secretes corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH) and thyrotropin-releasing hormone (TRH). CRH and TRH are secreted into the hypophyseal portal system and act on different targets neurons in the anterior pituitary. Dysfunctions of PVN can cause hypersomnia in mice, and dysfunction of the paraventricular nucleus can lead to drowsiness for up to 20 hours per day in humans. PVN is thought to mediate many diverse functions through different hormones, including osmoregulation, appetite,wakefulness, and the response of the body to stress.
Magnocellular neurosecretory cells are large neuroendocrine cells within the supraoptic nucleus and paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus. They are also found in smaller numbers in accessory cell groups between these two nuclei, the largest one being the circular nucleus. There are two types of magnocellular neurosecretory cells, oxytocin-producing cells and vasopressin-producing cells, but a small number can produce both hormones. These cells are neuroendocrine neurons, are electrically excitable, and generate action potentials in response to afferent stimulation. Vasopressin is produced from the vasopressin-producing cells via the AVP gene, a molecular output of circadian pathways.
The arcuate nucleus of the hypothalamus (ARH), or ARC, is also known as the infundibular nucleus to distinguish it from the arcuate nucleus of the medulla oblongata in the brainstem. The arcuate nucleus is an aggregation of neurons in the mediobasal hypothalamus, adjacent to the third ventricle and the median eminence. The arcuate nucleus includes several important and diverse populations of neurons that help mediate different neuroendocrine and physiological functions, including neuroendocrine neurons, centrally projecting neurons, and astrocytes. The populations of neurons found in the arcuate nucleus are based on the hormones they secrete or interact with and are responsible for hypothalamic function, such as regulating hormones released from the pituitary gland or secreting their own hormones. Neurons in this region are also responsible for integrating information and providing inputs to other nuclei in the hypothalamus or inputs to areas outside this region of the brain. These neurons, generated from the ventral part of the periventricular epithelium during embryonic development, locate dorsally in the hypothalamus, becoming part of the ventromedial hypothalamic region. The function of the arcuate nucleus relies on its diversity of neurons, but its central role is involved in homeostasis. The arcuate nucleus provides many physiological roles involved in feeding, metabolism, fertility, and cardiovascular regulation.
The median eminence is generally defined as the portion of the ventral hypothalamus from which the portal vessels arise. The median eminence is a small swelling on the tuber cinereum, posterior to and on top of the pituitary stalk; it lies in the area roughly bounded on its posterolateral region by the cerebral peduncles, and on its anterolateral region by the optic chiasm.
An osmoreceptor is a sensory receptor primarily found in the hypothalamus of most homeothermic organisms that detects changes in osmotic pressure. Osmoreceptors can be found in several structures, including two of the circumventricular organs – the vascular organ of the lamina terminalis, and the subfornical organ. They contribute to osmoregulation, controlling fluid balance in the body. Osmoreceptors are also found in the kidneys where they also modulate osmolality.
The subfornical organ (SFO) is one of the circumventricular organs of the brain. Its name comes from its location on the ventral surface of the fornix near the interventricular foramina, which interconnect the lateral ventricles and the third ventricle. Like all circumventricular organs, the subfornical organ is well-vascularized, and like all circumventricular organs except the subcommissural organ, some SFO capillaries have fenestrations, which increase capillary permeability. The SFO is considered a sensory circumventricular organ because it is responsive to a wide variety of hormones and neurotransmitters, as opposed to secretory circumventricular organs, which are specialized in the release of certain substances.
Fluid balance is an aspect of the homeostasis of organisms in which the amount of water in the organism needs to be controlled, via osmoregulation and behavior, such that the concentrations of electrolytes in the various body fluids are kept within healthy ranges. The core principle of fluid balance is that the amount of water lost from the body must equal the amount of water taken in; for example, in humans, the output must equal the input. Euvolemia is the state of normal body fluid volume, including blood volume, interstitial fluid volume, and intracellular fluid volume; hypovolemia and hypervolemia are imbalances. Water is necessary for all life on Earth. Humans can survive for 4 to 6 weeks without food but only for a few days without water.
Neuroendocrinology is the branch of biology which studies the interaction between the nervous system and the endocrine system; i.e. how the brain regulates the hormonal activity in the body. The nervous and endocrine systems often act together in a process called neuroendocrine integration, to regulate the physiological processes of the human body. Neuroendocrinology arose from the recognition that the brain, especially the hypothalamus, controls secretion of pituitary gland hormones, and has subsequently expanded to investigate numerous interconnections of the endocrine and nervous systems.
The dorsal longitudinal fasciculus (DLF) is a longitudinal tract interconnecting the posterior hypothalamus, and the inferior medulla oblongata. It contains both ascending tracts and descending tracts, and serves to link the forebrain, and the visceral autonomic centres of the lower brainstem. It conveys both visceral motor signals, and sensory signals.
Circumventricular organs (CVOs) are structures in the brain characterized by their extensive and highly permeable capillaries, unlike those in the rest of the brain where there exists a blood–brain barrier (BBB) at the capillary level. Although the term "circumventricular organs" was originally proposed in 1958 by Austrian anatomist Helmut O. Hofer concerning structures around the brain ventricular system, the penetration of blood-borne dyes into small specific CVO regions was discovered in the early 20th century. The permeable CVOs enabling rapid neurohumoral exchange include the subfornical organ (SFO), the area postrema (AP), the vascular organ of lamina terminalis, the median eminence, the pituitary neural lobe, and the pineal gland.
The periventricular nucleus is a thin sheet of small neurons located in the wall of the third ventricle, a composite structure of the hypothalamus. It functions in analgesia.
The lateral hypothalamus (LH), also called the lateral hypothalamic area (LHA), contains the primary orexinergic nucleus within the hypothalamus that widely projects throughout the nervous system; this system of neurons mediates an array of cognitive and physical processes, such as promoting feeding behavior and arousal, reducing pain perception, and regulating body temperature, digestive functions, and blood pressure, among many others. Clinically significant disorders that involve dysfunctions of the orexinergic projection system include narcolepsy, motility disorders or functional gastrointestinal disorders involving visceral hypersensitivity, and eating disorders.
The median preoptic nucleus is located dorsal to the other three nuclei of the preoptic area of the anterior hypothalamus. The hypothalamus is located just beneath the thalamus, the main sensory relay station of the nervous system, and is considered part of the limbic system, which also includes structures such as the hippocampus and the amygdala. The hypothalamus is highly involved in maintaining homeostasis of the body, and the median preoptic nucleus is no exception, contributing to regulation of blood composition, body temperature, and non-REM sleep.
Tanycytes are highly specialized ependymal cells found in the third ventricle of the brain, and on the floor of the fourth ventricle. Each tanycyte has a long basal process that extends deep into the hypothalamus. It is possible that their function is to transfer chemical signals from the cerebrospinal fluid to the central nervous system.
Parvocellular neurosecretory cells are small neurons that produce hypothalamic releasing and inhibiting hormones. The cell bodies of these neurons are located in various nuclei of the hypothalamus or in closely related areas of the basal brain, mainly in the medial zone of the hypothalamus. All or most of the axons of the parvocellular neurosecretory cells project to the median eminence, at the base of the brain, where their nerve terminals release the hypothalamic hormones. These hormones are then immediately absorbed into the blood vessels of the hypothalamo-pituitary portal system, which carry them to the anterior pituitary gland, where they regulate the secretion of hormones into the systemic circulation.
Kisspeptin, neurokinin B, and dynorphin (KNDy) neurons are neurons in the hypothalamus of the brain that are central to the hormonal control of reproduction.
References
- ↑ "Organum vasculosum". BrainInfo, University of Washington, Seattle.
- 1 2 Naganawa S, Taoka T, Kawai H, Yamazaki M, Suzuki K (April 2018). "Appearance of the Organum Vasculosum of the Lamina Terminalis on Contrast-enhanced MR Imaging". Magn Reson Med Sci. 17 (2): 132–137. doi:10.2463/mrms.mp.2017-0088. PMC 5891338 . PMID 28966303.
- 1 2 Patestas, Maria A.; Gartner, Leslie P. (2016). A Textbook of Neuroanatomy (2nd ed.). Hoboken, New Jersey: Wiley-Blackwell. ISBN 978-1-118-67746-9.
- ↑ "organe vasculaire de la lame terminale l.m. - Dictionnaire médical de l'Académie de Médecine". www.academie-medecine.fr. Retrieved 2024-05-24.
- ↑ Kaur, C; Ling, EA (September 2017). "The circumventricular organs". Histology and Histopathology. 32 (9): 879–892. doi:10.14670/HH-11-881. PMID 28177105.
- 1 2 Whyte, DG; Johnson, AK (May 2005). "Thermoregulatory role of periventricular tissue surrounding the anteroventral third ventricle (AV3V) during acute heat stress in the rat". Clinical and Experimental Pharmacology & Physiology. 32 (5–6): 457–61. doi:10.1111/j.1440-1681.2005.04211.x. PMID 15854158.
- 1 2 3 Johnson, A. K (1985). "The periventricular anteroventral third ventricle (AV3V): Its relationship with the subfornical organ and neural systems involved in maintaining body fluid homeostasis". Brain Research Bulletin. 15 (6): 595–601. doi:10.1016/0361-9230(85)90209-6. PMID 3910170. S2CID 4781981.
- ↑ Miyata, S (2015). "New aspects in fenestrated capillary and tissue dynamics in the sensory circumventricular organs of adult brains". Frontiers in Neuroscience. 9: 390. doi: 10.3389/fnins.2015.00390 . PMC 4621430 . PMID 26578857.
- 1 2 3 4 5 Johnson, A. K; Gross, P. M (1993). "Sensory circumventricular organs and brain homeostatic pathways". FASEB Journal. 7 (8): 678–86. doi: 10.1096/fasebj.7.8.8500693 . PMID 8500693. S2CID 13339562.
- ↑ Fry, Mark; Ferguson, Alastair V. (July 2007). "The sensory circumventricular organs: Brain targets for circulating signals controlling ingestive behavior". Physiology & Behavior. 91 (4): 413–423. doi:10.1016/j.physbeh.2007.04.003. PMID 17531276.
- 1 2 Gross, P. M; Weindl, A (1987). "Peering through the windows of the brain (review)". Journal of Cerebral Blood Flow & Metabolism. 7 (6): 663–72. doi:10.1038/jcbfm.1987.120. PMID 2891718. S2CID 18748366.
- 1 2 McKinley, M. J; Allen, A. M; May, C. N; McAllen, R. M; Oldfield, B. J; Sly, D; Mendelsohn, F. A (2001). "Neural pathways from the lamina terminalis influencing cardiovascular and body fluid homeostasis". Clinical and Experimental Pharmacology and Physiology. 28 (12): 990–2. doi:10.1046/j.1440-1681.2001.03592.x. PMID 11903300. S2CID 43091000.
- ↑ Fitzgerald, M J Turlough (2012). Clinical Neuroanatomy and Neuroscience. Philadelphia: Saunders Elsevier. p. 281. ISBN 978-0-7020-3738-2.
