Name the hormones secreted by the adrenal medulla

Question

Name the hormones secreted by the adrenal medulla? Describe their respective functions?

Answer 1

The medullary part of the adrenals secretes the hormones of catecholamine group: adrenaline (also termed as epinephrine) and noradrenaline (also termed as norepinephrine). Besides their hormonal function, the adrenaline and noradrenaline act as neurotransmitters also. The neurons which use them as neurotransmitters are termed as adrenergic neurons.

Adrenaline raises the glycogen breaking into glucose (or glycogenolysis) therefore rising glycemia and the basal metabolic rate of body. Adrenaline and noradrenaline are liberated during condition of danger (that is, fightfight or flight response) and they exaggerate the strength and rate of the heartbeat and selectively modulate the blood irrigation in several tissues by selective vasodilation and selective vasoconstriction. Through vasodilation they raise the blood supply to the brain, muscles and heart and by vasoconstriction they decrease the blood supply to the kidneys, skin and the gastrointestinal tract. Substances such as adrenaline and noradrenaline which promote vasodilation or vasoconstriction are termed as vasoactive substances.