How to memorize hormones

[swifteagle43]

Hey how did you guys memorize which hormones come from which gland and are composed of what?

Just brute memorization force? I have having a hard time remembering all the glands/hormones/if they are lipid/peptide or tyrosine based. Got any advice?

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[wisguy]

I liked the EK method - memorizing by the gland - because all the hormones produced by a gland are of the same type. Then try flashcards if you need more practice.

 

[Funky]

I used the method of the gland producing the same type also. I printed out that page in EK bio with all the glands and put it up on my wall to look at every day and I just noticed it's still up there.

 

[wisguy]

I used the method of the gland producing the same type also. I printed out that page in EK bio with all the glands and put it up on my wall to look at every day and I just noticed it's still up there.

Ha...I intentionally removed all my MCAT stuff from my office and put all my books in their EK box in an effort to put the test out of my mind while waiting for scores. Didn't work, though.

 

[phospho]

Hey how did you guys memorize which hormones come from which gland and are composed of what?

Just brute memorization force? I have having a hard time remembering all the glands/hormones/if they are lipid/peptide or tyrosine based. Got any advice?

hmm, i haven't reviewed them in a while...i'll do that now in this case...

You’ve got the anterior pituitary, the flat pig, and posterior pituitary, audio osmosis:
Flat Pig = FSH, LH, ACTH, TSH, Prolactin, Ignore, Growth Hormone
Audio Osmosis = AO = ADH and Oxytocin

Now go from outside to inside: Adrenal Cortex to Adrenal Medulla: CANE
Cortex = CA = Cortisol and Aldosterone
Medulla = NE – norepi and epi

Then you’ve got the thyroid (T3 and T4, i.e. thyroxine) and parathyroid (PTH)

Do you like pot? I like pot: POT = Pancreas (sugar up for glucagon, and sugar down for insulin), Ovaries (estrogen & progesterone – think menstruation/), Testes (testosterone and estrogen – also think menstruation, lol, j/k)

I’m at work, so I might be missing something… if I haven’t confused you even more, I hope this helped you at least a little bit… memorize them cold…no easy way out… I did what docfunk did…it worked like a charm…if I recall correctly, it’s page 117…

Best of luck…

 

[phospho]

oh there's another glad at the very end... something for pregnancy...i forgot it... either way, it uses three hormones... two i've already mentioned (im thinking estrogen and progesterone and something else)...

 

[gujuDoc]

Hey how did you guys memorize which hormones come from which gland and are composed of what?

Just brute memorization force? I have having a hard time remembering all the glands/hormones/if they are lipid/peptide or tyrosine based. Got any advice?

Also in response to everyone else, remember that the majority of the steroid hormones end in -ol or -one except for one or two of them. I just straight memorized it but I think the method they are suggesting of memorizing by gland is a good method.

 

[wisguy]

Also in response to everyone else, remember that the majority of the steroid hormones end in -ol or -one except for one or two of them. I just straight memorized it but I think the method they are suggesting of memorizing by gland is a good method.

Remember that steroid hormones are a cholesterOL derivative. That's something that a free standing question might ask anyhow, so it's good information and it also will help you remember what type of hormone it is.

 

[HippocratesX]

oh there's another glad at the very end... something for pregnancy...i forgot it... either way, it uses three hormones... two i've already mentioned (im thinking estrogen and progesterone and something else)...

...and HCG hormone from the placenta. It stimulates the other 2 you mentioned (estrogen and progesterone) to be released.

 

[mh82ai3]

mnemonic for adrenal cortex:
3 layers - GFR (glomerular filtration rate)

but for here they are from outside in:
G - zona glomerulosa makes aldosterone -> salt regulation
F - zona fasiculata makes cortisol -> for stuff including blood sugar
R - zona reticularis makes sex hormones (testosterone)

the deeper you go the sweeter it gets

you always remember the dirty ones

 

[phospho]

...and HCG hormone from the placenta. It stimulates the other 2 you mentioned (estrogen and progesterone) to be released.

yep ...

 

[phospho]

Remember that steroid hormones are a cholesterOL derivative. That's something that a free standing question might ask anyhow, so it's good information and it also will help you remember what type of hormone it is.

naa, too easy...would probably shoot for something making us tie the smooth ER with steroid synthesis with cholesterol derivatives with steroid hormones, etc...

 

[swifteagle43]

hmm, i haven't reviewed them in a while...i'll do that now in this case...

You’ve got the anterior pituitary, the flat pig, and posterior pituitary, audio osmosis:
Flat Pig = FSH, LH, ACTH, TSH, Prolactin, Ignore, Growth Hormone
Audio Osmosis = AO = ADH and Oxytocin

Now go from outside to inside: Adrenal Cortex to Adrenal Medulla: CANE
Cortex = CA = Cortisol and Aldosterone
Medulla = NE – norepi and epi

Then you’ve got the thyroid (T3 and T4, i.e. thyroxine) and parathyroid (PTH)

Do you like pot? I like pot: POT = Pancreas (sugar up for glucagon, and sugar down for insulin), Ovaries (estrogen & progesterone – think menstruation/), Testes (testosterone and estrogen – also think menstruation, lol, j/k)

I’m at work, so I might be missing something… if I haven’t confused you even more, I hope this helped you at least a little bit… memorize them cold…no easy way out… I did what docfunk did…it worked like a charm…if I recall correctly, it’s page 117…

Best of luck…

Yes I do enjoy pot I quit smoking in 6 months ago to study for this. And WOW! What a great pneumonic system!!!!

 

[HippocratesX]

Just wanted to add to this whole hormone topic; Besides for having just memorized the hormones, I think that understanding the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone pathway is a good thing to have down, especially to tie a few organ systems together and look at it holistically.

when blood pressure is low, renin is released, activating angiotensinogen (sp?) to turn into angiotensin - which then increases the blood pressure by constricting vessels, and angiotensin also stimulates the release of aldosterone from the adrenal glands. Aldosterone then causes retention of water and sodium in the kidney, thus increasing blood volume and blood pressure. Apparently its a high yield medical topic (the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone pathway)...so just thought it might be worth noting...

 

[Dr.Masamichi]

Just wanted to add to this whole hormone topic; Besides for having just memorized the hormones, I think that understanding the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone pathway is a good thing to have down, especially to tie a few organ systems together and look at it holistically.

when blood pressure is low, renin is released, activating angiotensinogen (sp?) to turn into angiotensin - which then increases the blood pressure by constricting vessels, and angiotensin also stimulates the release of aldosterone from the adrenal glands. Aldosterone then causes retention of water and sodium in the kidney, thus increasing blood volume and blood pressure. Apparently its a high yield medical topic (the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone pathway)...so just thought it might be worth noting...

Since I just studied this section I'd like to make just a tiny bit of correction here. Actually, aldosterone (again end in sterone so u know it's from steroid hormone family) causes retention of sodium in kidney...this causes the secretion of ADH from the posterior pituitary to absorb water. This is very important to remember because even if the kidney retains sodium but ADH is not secreted, water will not be absorbed because ADH stimulates the production of more water channels (I think or more Na+/K+ channels) so water can be absorbed due to high conc. of Na+ in the nephron medulla. That's all I got to contribute.

About memorizing the hormones, I just remember them cold...put them in ur long term memory instead of short term memory then u won't forget

 

[Dr.Masamichi]

hmm, i haven't reviewed them in a while...i'll do that now in this case...

You’ve got the anterior pituitary, the flat pig, and posterior pituitary, audio osmosis:
Flat Pig = FSH, LH, ACTH, TSH, Prolactin, Ignore, Growth Hormone
Audio Osmosis = AO = ADH and Oxytocin

Now go from outside to inside: Adrenal Cortex to Adrenal Medulla: CANE
Cortex = CA = Cortisol and Aldosterone
Medulla = NE – norepi and epi

Then you’ve got the thyroid (T3 and T4, i.e. thyroxine) and parathyroid (PTH)

Do you like pot? I like pot: POT = Pancreas (sugar up for glucagon, and sugar down for insulin), Ovaries (estrogen & progesterone – think menstruation/), Testes (testosterone and estrogen – also think menstruation, lol, j/k)

I’m at work, so I might be missing something… if I haven’t confused you even more, I hope this helped you at least a little bit… memorize them cold…no easy way out… I did what docfunk did…it worked like a charm…if I recall correctly, it’s page 117…

Best of luck…

Hey, u forget to include MSH (melanocyte stimulating hormone) in the list of AP's list. *AP (anterior pituitary)

 

[HippocratesX]

Yes, antidiuretic hormone (ADH) causes the collecting ducts to be permeable to water, so that water flows back into the body system and out of the filtration system, making the filtrate more concentrated and less volume....thus the body retains water. Thanks for your correction

I was asking a urologist about this and he was saying that ADH comes in the form of pills as well, called desmopressin or vassopressin. They prescribe it for elderly patients who are troubled by getting up to urinate 5-6 times within the night. And sometimes also for children who wet the bed. Althought, if they have high blood pressure, then they take them off the antidiuretics and give them a diuretic. Btw...diuretic just means "tending to get rid of water/urine" from the body.

It always helps me to look at the big picture of what is doing what and why by relating it to concrete examples. That way the information sticks.

 

[HippocratesX]

Hey, u forget to include MSH (melanocyte stimulating hormone) in the list of AP's list. *AP (anterior pituitary)

Phospho left it out because EK (examkrackers) does not include it as one of the 'important' hormones from the AP to memorize

 

[CATallergy]

Since I just studied this section I'd like to make just a tiny bit of correction here. Actually, aldosterone (again end in sterone so u know it's from steroid hormone family) causes retention of sodium in kidney...this causes the secretion of ADH from the posterior pituitary to absorb water. This is very important to remember because even if the kidney retains sodium but ADH is not secreted, water will not be absorbed because ADH stimulates the production of more water channels (I think or more Na+/K+ channels) so water can be absorbed due to high conc. of Na+ in the nephron medulla. That's all I got to contribute.

About memorizing the hormones, I just remember them cold...put them in ur long term memory instead of short term memory then u won't forget

good map at wiki:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Renin-angiotensin-aldosterone_system.png

 

[EECStoMed]

I liked the EK method - memorizing by the gland - because all the hormones produced by a gland are of the same type. Then try flashcards if you need more practice.

Quick correction to your statement as I didn't want some people getting the wrong idea. The thyroid actually stimulates two types of hormones, the tyrosine ones, T3 and T4 and also calcitonin which is a peptide hormone. It's the only gland that secretes two types. Cheers

 

[nee-ra-zon]

Hey, u forget to include MSH (melanocyte stimulating hormone) in the list of AP's list. *AP (anterior pituitary)

Actually MSH comes from intermediate pituitary (as mentioned in books I studied). So, the list goes as follows:
Anterior Pituitary: FSH LH TSH ACTH Prolactin and GH
Intermediate Pituitay: MSH
Posterior Pituitary: Oxytocin and ADH

 

[DaAlienist]

Actually MSH comes from intermediate pituitary (as mentioned in books I studied). So, the list goes as follows:
Anterior Pituitary: FSH LH TSH ACTH Prolactin and GH
Intermediate Pituitay: MSH
Posterior Pituitary: Oxytocin and ADH

Do you have any good mnemonics or exercises to help with this information? I always hated memorizing the hormones and endocrine signal pathways in class. I used to just brute force it but from what I have read, that is not ideal for the MCAT.

 

[Saraam]

Do you have any good mnemonics or exercises to help with this information? I always hated memorizing the hormones and endocrine signal pathways in class. I used to just brute force it but from what I have read, that is not ideal for the MCAT.

 

[Saraam]

I would like to know whether ASH is secreted in response to sodium and water retention or Angiotensin 2.
Pls clarify.

 

[Optimist Prime]

I would like to know whether ASH is secreted in response to sodium and water retention or Angiotensin 2.
Pls clarify.

This thread is from 2007 try posting in the MCAT section