Fundamentals of Comparative Vertebrate Endocrinology

668 Pages·1987·27.01 MB·English

by  D. E. Kime (auth.)

Fundamentals of
Comparative Vertebrate
Endocrinology
Fundamentals of
Comparative Vertebrate
Endocrinology
Edited by
I. Chester-Jones
and
P. M. lngleton
Sheffield University
Sheffield, United Kingdom
and
J. G. Phillips
Loughborough University of Technology
Loughborough, United Kingdom
Springer Science+Business Media, LLC
Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data
Fundamentals of comparative vertebrate endocrinology.
Includes bibliographies and index.
l. Endocrinology, Comparative. 2. Vertebrates-Physiology. I. Chester-Jones, I. II.
lngleton, P. M. III. Phillips, J. G. (John Guest)
QP187.F795 1986 596'.0142 86-22703
ISBN 978-1-4899-3619-6 ISBN 978-1-4899-3617-2 (eBook)
DOI 10.1007/978-1-4899-3617-2
© 1987 Springer Science+Business Media New York
Originally published by Plenum Press, New York in 1987.
Softcover reprint of the hardcover lst edition 1987
All rights reserved
No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted
in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, microfilming,
recording, or otherwise, without written permission from the Publisher
Contributors
R. J. Balment • Department of Zoology, University of Manchester, Manchester
M 13 9PL, England
T. F. C. Batten • Department of Cardiovascular Studies, Medical School, Univer
sity of Leeds, Leeds LS2 9JT, England
Ian P. Callard • Department of Biology, Biological Science Center, Boston Uni
versity, Boston, Massachusetts 02215
I. Chester-Jones • Department of Zoology, Sheffield University, Sheffield S 10
2TN, England
D. A. Gapp • Biology Department, Hamilton College, Clinton, New York 13323
S. Harvey • Wolfson Institute, University of Hull, Hull HU6 7RK, England
I. W. Henderson • Department of Zoology, University of Sheffield, Sheffield
S 10 2TN, England
S-m. Ho • Department of Biology, Tufts University, Boston, Massachusetts
02155
P. M. Ingleton • Department of Pathology, Medical School, University of
Sheffield, Sheffield S 10 2RX, England
D. E. Kime • Department of Zoology, Sheffield University, Sheffield S 10 2TN,
England
S.M. Kleis • Department of Biology, Biological Science Center, Boston Univer
sity, Boston, Massachusetts 02215
v
vi Contributors
Frank L. Moore • Department of Zoology, Oregon State University, Corvallis,
Oregon 97331
j. G. Phillips • Wolfson Institute, University of Hull, Hull HU6 7RK, England
J. A. Pudney • Biological Science Center, Boston University, Boston, Mas
sachusetts 02215
C. G. Scanes • Department of Animal Science, Rutgers University, New
Brunswick, New Jersey 08903
A. P. Scott • Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, Directorate of Fisheries
Research, Fisheries Laboratory, Lowestoft, Suffolk NR33 OHT, England
Preface
Endocrinology, as a discipline, was a late arrival in the corpus of established
subjects. Its growth in recent years has been prodigious, extending from mor
phology to molecular levels. Most of the major endocrine glands were noted by the
early anatomists, although the adrenal glands were not described until 1563 by
Bartholomaeus Eustachius (1520-1574). On the other hand, elucidation of the
function of these glands was extremely slow. Key work by A. A. Berthold (1849),
although overlooked at the time, showed that comb atrophy in castrated fowl was
prevented by testis transplantation. The idea that glands produced substances reach
ing the bloodstream directly and not via excretory ducts stemmed from Claude
Bernard, who first used the term internal secretion in 1855. The clinical observa
tions of Thomas Addison at Guy's Hospital-published as a monograph in 1855
entitled The Constitutional and Local Effects of Disease of the Suprarenal Capsules
-were seminal. However, the stimulus of this early research did not bring imme
diate widespread further investigations.
Upon the discovery of secretin in 1902, Bayliss and Starling considered the
term "internal secretion" to be clumsy, and the term "hormone" was coined (from
OQ[!UW-1 excite or arouse) and it was first used by Starling in his Croonian
Lecture of 1905. The relatively simple statement that endocrine glands secrete
hormones, chemical agents circulating in the bloodstream through which an event in
one part of the body influences or initiates an event in another part, now involves
more complicated definitions. Indeed they become blurred, as in the case of cellular
"inductors" and growth factors with local actions. Nevertheless the study of glands
of internal secretion demanded a general term for the subject. This became
endocrinology (£voov-within; xg[vw-separate), first used in 1909 by the Italian
physician Pen de and established in England by Crookshank in 1914.
Endocrinology in its origins placed predominant emphasis on medical condi-
vii
viii Preface
tions and paramedical experiments. The term general endocrinology was introduced
to indicate that endocrine examination of any member of the animal kingdom, both
vertebrate and invertebrate, was legitimate in its own right. Such an approach gave
rise to textbooks which included general endocrinology in the title. The subject of
the present volume is comparative endocrinology. Comparative is an adjective
derived from comparison, and the examination of organs in the light of correspond
ing features in another was practiced in the earliest days of comparative anatomy,
for example by Aristotle (384-322 B.C.) and Galen (130-200 B.C.). However,
these early studies were concerned only with descriptive anatomy (zootomy) and
the comparison of one species with another. It was the theory of evolution which
gave conceptual substance to comparative anatomy. Comparative could then be
applied, in the modem sense, to various disciplines such as comparative phys
iology. Now comparative endocrinology is an established part of the corpus of
knowledge comprising endocrinology and relates to the evolutionary status of the
animals considered. In practical terms, comparative endocrinology is concerned
with control, at all levels from molecule to social group, and may be expected to
provide some interesting insights into the evolution of intercellular ''paracrine''
control. For example, in the typical mammalian mosaic of pituitary cells, adjacent,
but different, cells appear to influence the activity of each other; in fishes, cell types
are not all intermingled and perhaps the only "paracrine" influence is via a nerve
axon.
Comparative vertebrate endocrinology is an expanding area of knowledge, and
the five parts of this book provide the essential building blocks of information and
understanding upon which further study must be based. For this reason the editors
have brought together specialist authors to present the fundamental facts, so that
each chapter is designed for the clearest presentation of the particular subject area.
Steroids are very ancient molecules which have been utilized throughout the
evolution of living forms. Here, in Part I, we describe the anatomy and morphology
of steroid-secreting tissues in vertebrates, as well as the metabolism of steroid
molecules. The physiological roles of steroids have evolved into many systems, as
described particularly in Part II: Reproduction in Nonmammalian Vertebrates, Part
IV: Secretion of Endocrine Glands and Their Relationship to Osmoregulation, and
Part V: Endocrine and Related Factors in the Control of Metabolism in Nonmam
malian Vertebrates. Modem evolutionary theories suggest that persistence of the
genome into subsequent generations provides the fundamental reproductive drive.
Part II describes the endocrine control of reproductive functions and mechanisms in
nonmammalian vertebrates, which have evolved to ensure successful inheritance of
genotype. Living organisms must consistently respond to changes in their environ
ment to maintain their own integrity. The hypothalamus and pituitary gland together
form the major integrative endocrine system which coordinates signals from the
environment, principally via the brain, integument, and gastrointestinal tract, with
internal stimuli from peripheral endocrine organs; the structure, functions, and
secretions of this system are described in Part III. The role of hormones in maintain
ing internal water and ion balance in vertebrates faced with hostile hypertonic or
Preface ix
hypotonic media is described in Part IV, while in Part V the evolution of mecha
nisms of action of the gut hormones is presented. The gut forms a major interface
between an animal and its environment and is the site of uptake of essential amino
acids, lipids, and sugars needed to maintain somal integrity; thus, hormones in this
system play a truly vital role.
The level of presentation throughout is that required for undergraduate and
graduate students pursuing courses in endocrinology. Thus, while further reading
lists are provided, all statements and opinions are not documented as they would be
in research papers and reviews. Apart from the three editors, thirteen authors of
these chapters have provided the student with the necessary background from which
to move forward to greater understanding of the patterns of life.
The style of this book has been prepared to accord with American usage based
on Webster's Third New International Dictionary and Dorland's Medical Diction
ary. Thus, for example, "hypophyseal" is the preferred spelling although "hypo
physial" is correct: The authoritative statement and explanation of the error were
given by David McRioch, George B. Wislocki, and James L. O'Leary in 1940 in
Res. Publ. Assoc. Nerv. Ment. Dis. 20:3.
We thank Dr. David J. Groves for the original drawings in Part I, Chapters 2
and 3, which are not otherwise acknowledged.
I. Chester-Jones
P. M. lngleton
J. G. Phillips
Contents
I. STRUCTURE OF STEROIDOGENIC TISSUES AND THEIR
MODES OF SECRETION
1. The Steroids . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
D. E. Kime
l. General Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
2. Steroid Structure and Biosynthesis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
3. Steroids of the Testis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
4. Steroids of the Ovary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
5. Steroids of the Adrenal and Interrenal Glands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
6. The Liver and Steroid Catabolism . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
7. General Conclusions and Comments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
8. Selected Readings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56
2. Overall View of the Organization of the Vertebrate Gonad and the
Structure of Steroidogenic Cells. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57
J. A. Pudney
l. Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57
2. Morphology of Steroid-Producing Cells . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57
3. Correlation of Structure with Function . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67
4. Steroid Secretion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69
5. Organization of the Gonads . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70
6. Selected Readings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94
xi