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In humans and other animals, the adrenocortical hormones are hormones produced by the adrenal cortex, the outer region of the adrenal gland.These polycyclic steroid hormones have a variety of roles that are crucial for the body's response to stress (for example, the fight-or-flight response), and they also regulate other functions in the body.
Corticosteroids are a class of steroid hormones that are produced in the adrenal cortex of vertebrates, as well as the synthetic analogues of these hormones.Two main classes of corticosteroids, glucocorticoids and mineralocorticoids, are involved in a wide range of physiological processes, including stress response, immune response, and regulation of inflammation, carbohydrate metabolism ...
Aldosterone is the primary of several endogenous members of the class of mineralocorticoids in humans. [citation needed] Deoxycorticosterone is another important member of this class. Aldosterone tends to promote Na + and water retention, and lower plasma K + concentration by the following mechanisms:
Adrenal steroids are steroids that are derived from the adrenal glands.They include corticosteroids, which consist of glucocorticoids like cortisol and mineralocorticoids like aldosterone, adrenal androgens like dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA), DHEA sulfate (DHEA-S), and androstenedione (A4), and neurosteroids like DHEA and DHEA-S, as well as pregnenolone and pregnenolone sulfate (P5-S).
The outermost layer, the zona glomerulosa is the main site for the production of aldosterone, a mineralocorticoid. The synthesis and secretion of aldosterone are mainly regulated by the renin–angiotensin–aldosterone system. The zona glomerulosa cells express a specific enzyme aldosterone synthase (also known as CYP11B2).
Glucocorticoids are corticosteroids that bind to the glucocorticoid receptor [1] that is present in almost every vertebrate animal cell. The name "glucocorticoid" is a portmanteau ( gluco se + cort ex + ster oid ) and is composed from its role in regulation of glucose metabolism , synthesis in the adrenal cortex , and its steroidal structure ...
It selectively stimulates secretion of aldosterone. The secretion of aldosterone has a diurnal rhythm. Control of aldosterone release from the adrenal cortex: [citation needed] The role of the renin–angiotensin system: Angiotensin is involved in regulating aldosterone and is the core regulator. Angiotensin II acts synergistically with potassium.
In order to be active, steroid hormones must free themselves from their blood-solubilizing proteins and either bind to extracellular receptors, or passively cross the cell membrane and bind to nuclear receptors. This idea is known as the free hormone hypothesis. This idea is shown in Figure 1 to the right.