THE PINEAL GLAND - A SYNOPSIS OF PRESENT KNOWLEDGE WITH PARTICULAR EMPHASIS ON ITS POSSIBLE ROLE IN CONTROL OF GONADTROPHIN FUNCTION A fundamental principle of anatomy is that structure

A fundamental principle of anatomy is that structure and function are related intimately. Thus, to understand the function of an organ, a knowledge is required of its structure both at macroand microanatomical levels.Until comparatively recently, surprisingly little was known about pineal structure, even in laboratory animals, and as a consequence, very little was known with certainty about its function. However, in the light of recent advances in this field, the pineal is now known to be, in general terms, a "neuro-endocrine transducer", Le. the pineal receivesneural stimuli and transforms them into a hormonal output (Wurtman & Anton-Tay, 1969). Further, of the many functions attributed to the pineal, the most widely investigated activity of the gland is its involvement in partial control of gonadotrophin secretion (Anton-Tay, 1971; Moszkowska,Kordoo & Ebels, 1971). However, work on the pineal is still in its comparative infancy andmany important questions about its anatomy and hence its function remain unsolved. Thus, for example, four important questions are: