Editorial: Frontiers in the midlands society of physiological sciences (2023-2024)

Hormones regulate a significant portion of digestion through activation of the neuroendocrine system. The neuroendocrine system of digestion contains many different hormones all with multiple functions that are both, directly and indirectly, involved in digestion.

Overview

Digestion begins with a cephalic phase that prepares the digestive system to receive food. When our brain processes visual or olfactory information about food, it triggers impulses in the cranial nerves innervating the salivary glands and stomach to prepare for food.

The tonicity of a solution determines if a cell gains or loses water in that solution. The tonicity depends on the permeability of the cell membrane for different solutes and the concentration of nonpenetrating solutes in the solution within and outside of the cell. If a semipermeable membrane hinders the passage of some solutes but allows water to follow its concentration gradient, water moves from the side with low osmolarity (i.e., less solute) to the side with higher osmolarity (i.e.,...

The response to stress—be it physical or psychological, acute or chronic—involves activation of the Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Adrenal (HPA) axis. The HPA axis is part of the neuroendocrine system because it involves both neuronal and hormonal communication. Its function is to regulate homeostatic systems—metabolic, cardiovascular, and immune—providing the necessary means to respond to a stressor.

Organisms that are well-adapted to their environment are more likely to survive and reproduce. However, natural selection does not lead to perfectly adapted organisms. Several factors constrain natural selection.