[Hypothalamic control of ACTH secretion]

The hypothalamic regulation of ACTH secretion has been reviewed. Recent biochemical investigations on corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) suggest that CRF is present in the hypothalamus under two or more different molecular weight forms, their structure being not elucidated yet. Vasopressin has a CRF-like activity. However, contradictory results have been reported on the role of AVP as a physiological CRF. The synthesis of CRF appears to occur in a large hypothalamic area outside the median eminence. CRF-carrying fibers are thought to pass through the lateral retrochiasmatic area and project on the hypophysial portal vessels at the junction between the pituitary stalk and the median eminence. Conflicting data have been published on the influence of monoamines on ACTH secretion. In the dog, ACTH release is inhibited by the alpha-adrenergic receptors, this effect being not as clearly demonstrated in other species. The stimulation of nicotinic and muscarinic receptors followed by increased ACTH secretion. Glucocorticoids appear to lower ACTH secretion through an action at both the hypothalamic and pituitary levels.