Anatomy
pineal gland
pin·e·al gland
Subclass of:
Neurosecretory Systems;
Endocrine Glands;
Epithalamic
Etymology:
Latin pinea = a pine cone
Definitions related to pineal gland:
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(gland, pineal) A small endocrine gland that arises from the central posterior aspect of the diencephalon.CDISC TerminologyClinical Data Interchange Standards Consortium (CDISC), 2021
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(pineal body) Circumventricular organ of neuraxis which is shaped like a pine cone and attached on the midline near the posterior and habenular commissures of the epithalamus.Foundational Model of AnatomyUniversity of Washington, 2017
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(pineal body) Endocrine gland, located in the median plane, just posterior to the dorsal part of the dorsal thalamus and rostral to the superior colliculus; concerned with adjustment to circadian rhythms; light is thought to have an inhibitory effect on its secretory activity and darkness to be excitatory; impulses are relayed from the retina to the suprachiasmatic nucleus, then to the pineal body by way of the thoracic spinal cord; secretes melatonin, other biogenic amines, and neuropeptides.CRISP ThesaurusNational Institutes of Health, 2006
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A gland located in the middle of the brain, between the brain's two hemispheres, that produces melatonin in response to declining light.Harvard Dictionary of Health TermsHarvard Medical Publishing, 2011
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A light-sensitive neuroendocrine organ attached to the roof of the THIRD VENTRICLE of the brain. The pineal gland secretes MELATONIN, other BIOGENIC AMINES and NEUROPEPTIDES.NLM Medical Subject HeadingsU.S. National Library of Medicine, 2021
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A small endocrine gland in the brain, situated beneath the back part of the corpus callosum, that secretes melatonin.NCI ThesaurusU.S. National Cancer Institute, 2021
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A tiny organ in the cerebrum that produces melatonin.NCI Dictionary of Cancer TermsU.S. National Cancer Institute, 2021
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The principal aspect of the pineal gland anatomy is the pineal parenchymal cell, or pinocyte. The pineal gland develops during the second month of gestation as a diverticulum in the diencephalic roof of the third ventricle.WebMD, 2019
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Pineal gland, endocrine gland found in vertebrates that is the source of melatonin, a hormone derived from tryptophan that plays a central role in the regulation of circadian rhythm (the roughly 24-hour cycle of biological activities associated with natural periods of light and darkness). The...Encyclopedia Britannica, Inc., 2020
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