Endocrinology is relatively a recent science. It began with the first recorded experiment on hormones by Berthold in 1849. For the next forty years, there were no significant developments. Endocrine or ductless glands secrete hormones into the extra cellular space surrounding them. These hormones enter the circulatory system and are distributed to the target sites. ‘Endocrinology’ is the study of the ductless glands or tissues and their hormonal products. Hormones are considered to be synthesized within specific endocrine organs and then secreted into the blood stream to act on specific target sites some distance away to evoke a physiological response. However, there are large numbers of exceptions to this definition. For example, secretin like peptide is produced by nerve cells within brain and it acts on adjacent or nearby neurons without being transported by the blood stream. Such substances, which act as local messengers, are known as local hormones.

Hima Xavier

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