Question

prepare a four minute summary explaining how chemical signals from the endocrine system drive development of the reproductive system in both sexes. Your summary should include a comparison of this process among males and females. Your summary should be well organized, and should make sense to somebody who doesn’t have the guiding questions in front of them.

In your summary you should address the following questions:

• What hormones are involved in this process?
• What cells do these hormones interact with?
• What effect do the identified hormones have?
• What additional actions might these hormones have within the body (apart from the reproductive system)?

Answer 1

The endocrine system secretes hormones into blood and body fluids, hormones that provide feedback to the brain to effect neural processing .The hypothalamus controls both pituiitary and endocrine glands. In both men and women, Hypothalamus-Pituitary-Gonadal axis is the hormone system that controls the release of sex hormones, in both males and females the system is activated by GnRH released by hypothalamus, GnRH stimulates the release of FSH and LH from the anterior pituitary, these hormones play an important role in controling reproduction.

In males, at puberty hypothalamus causes the release of FSH and LH into the male system FSH enters the testes and stimulates Sertoli cells to begin spermatogenesis, sperm production, LH also stimulates interstitial cells of leydig to release testesterone into testes and blood, it is the testosterone hormone which is responsible for the development of secondary sexual charecterstics.it also stimulates sperm production. When testosterone levels are high a negative feedback loop mechanism occurs where in sertoli cells produce the hormone inhibin, which is released in blood when sperm count is high, this hormone will inhibit the release of GnRH and FSH which will slow down sperm production.

In females, simlar to males, anterior pituitary hormones cause the release of FSH and LH and in addition to this estrogen and progesterone are released form developing follicles, estrogen is responsible for the development of secondary sexual charecterstics in women,it also helps in endometrial growth, ovulution and calcium absorption. Progesterone is produced by the ovaries, the placenta (during pregnancy) and the adrenal glands, it helps your body for conception, pregnancy and regulates monthly menstrual cycle. In females FSH stimulates development of ova which develops in structure called follicles , follicles produce a hormone called inhibin which inhibit FSH production. LH also plays a role in the development of ova, induction of ovulution and stimulation of production of estradiol and progesterone by the ovaries, these two hormones prepare the body for pregnancy, both estradiol and progesterone regulates the menstrual cycle.