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The pineal gland (also known as the pineal body [1] or epiphysis cerebri) is a small endocrine gland in the brain of most vertebrates. It produces melatonin , a serotonin -derived hormone , which modulates sleep patterns following the diurnal cycles . [ 2 ]
An abundance of cilia and centrioles has also been found in these Type 2 cells of the pineal gland. [7] Unique to the Type 2 is the presence of vacuoles containing 2 layers of membrane. [7] As Type 1 cells contain serotonin, Type 2 cells contain melatonin and are thought to have similar characteristics as endocrine and neuronal cells. [8]
The pineal gland is attached to the brain in this region. [7] The medial habenula (MHb) receives connections from posterior septum pellucidum and diagonal band of Broca; the lateral habenula receives afferents from the lateral hypothalamus, nucleus accumbens, internal globus pallidus, ventral pallidum, and diagonal band of Broca. [8]
The epithalamus is a tiny structure that comprises the habenular trigone, the pineal gland, and the habenular commissure. It is wired with the limbic system and basal ganglia . Species that possess a photoreceptive parapineal organ show asymmetry in the epithalamus at the habenula, to the left (dorsal).
The pineal gland is located in the diencephalon of the brain. It primarily releases melatonin, which influences daily rhythms and may have an antigonadotropic effect in humans. [citation needed] It may also influence the melanotropes and melanocytes located in the skin. [citation needed]
Anatomical comparison between the brain of a lizard (A and C) and the brain of a turkey (B and D). Abbreviations: Olf, olfactory lobes; Hmp, cerebral hemispheres; Pn, pineal gland ; Mb, optic lobes of the middle brain ; Cb, cerebellum; MO, medulla oblongata; ii, optic nerves; iv and vi, nerves for the muscles of the eye; Py, pituitary body.
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Greek physician Galen was the first to give written description about the pineal gland in the 2nd century CE. [8] He indicated that the structure as an part of the brain was already known to earlier Greek scholars, crediting Herophilus (325–280 BCE) as the first to have described the possible role of the gland. [9]