What Are The Pituitary Gland Hormones?

Adrenocorticotropic Hormone

Adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) is the pituitary hormone responsible for controlling how much cortisol is produced by the adrenal glands. Cortisol is one of the main hormones involved in an individual's stress response and produces numerous physiological changes in the body to prepare it for fight or flight. The process of pituitary secretion of ACTH is similar to TSH as it follows another negative feedback loop referred to as the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis. When an individual's hypothalamus detects low levels of adrenocorticotropic hormone in the blood, it produces a hormone referred to as corticotropin-releasing hormone. Corticotropin-releasing hormone is what tells the pituitary gland to produce more ACTH. When the adrenal glands detect high levels of adrenocorticotropic hormone in the blood, they secrete a hormone called cortisol. When the levels of cortisol in the blood rise, the hypothalamus slows its release of the corticotrophin-releasing hormone. As a result of this process, the pituitary gland slows down its production of ACTH, and the loop starts all over again.

Read more about the hormones the pituitary gland produces now.