MORPHOMETRY OF THE HUMAN PINEAL GLAND: RELATIONSHIP TO THE ADRENAL CORTEX

Publisher Website
Google Scholar
Abstract
To investigate the role of the pineal gland in the endocrine system, 26 autopsy cases dead from non-neoplastic diseases were examined. The study was carried out on the hypothetic basis of the possible influences of the pineal gland on the pituitary-adrenal axis. Measurements on the pineal gland revealed that the weight of the gland was directly proportional to the volume (r = 0.94; P < 0.001) and also to the nuclear density of the parenchyme (r = 0.65; P < 0.01). The interrelationship between the weight of the pineal gland and the thickness of the adrenal cortex was determined (r = -0.56; P < 0.05). The pineal gland was significantly larger in weight in the prednisolone treated patients (166 .+-. 66 mg, [.+-. SD]) than in the others (97 .+-. 52 mg; P < 0.05). Functional antagonism apparently exists between the pineal gland and the adrenal cortex in man, although the mechanism involved was not clarified.