The adult pineal gland is composed of pinealocytes, astrocytes, microglia, and other interstitial cells that have been described in detail. However, factors that contribute to pineal development have not been fully elucidated, nor have pineal cell lineages been well characterized. We applied systematic double, triple and quadruple labeling of cell-specific markers on prenatal, postnatal and mat...

The mammalian pineal gland is rich in serotonin content and this amine is present in high concentration within the sympathetic nerve endings of this organ (Quay and Halevy, 1962; Bertler et al., 1963). Sympathetic denervation of the pineal gland results in a 50% decrease in its serotonin content (Bertler et al., 1963; Pellegrino de Iraldi et al., 1963). Recently it has been demonstrated that th...

Pineal metastasis is uncommon and most metastatic pineal lesions are asymptomatic. To our knowledge the herein reported case is the first in which the pineal gland was confirmed as the metastatic site of a bladder carcinoma.The patient reported in this case is a 59-year-old man who suffered from headache and delirium for 4 days after surgical treatment for removal of a bladder carcinoma 1 year ...

Sympathetic nerve fibers arising from the superior cervical ganglia are the main innervation of the rat pineal gland. Since most organs innervated by these ganglia contain nerve growth factor (NGF), the hypothetical existence of NGF in the pineal gland was investigated. The peroxidase anti-peroxidase technique was applied for the immunohistochemical demonstration of NGF using a polyclonal antis...

In spite of concerted efforts by many investigators, the function of the pineal gland remains an enigma. Certainly un­ derstanding has progressed since the ob­ servations of the philosopher Herophilus who thought that the pineal was a sphinc­ ter to control the flow of thought from the ventricles or Descartes’ proclamation that the pineal was the “ Seat of the Soul.” U n­ fortunately, no invest...

PURPOSE To use MR imaging in the analysis of the size of the normal pineal gland in infants, children, and adolescents. METHODS We retrospectively analyzed the size of the pineal gland in 249 patients (129 male and 120 female) aged 2 weeks to 20 years old. The maximum length (L), height (H), and width (W) of the gland were determined from a combination of sagittal, coronal, and axial MR image...

OBJECTIVES Pineal gland hormone, melatonin, is a current issue of interest for accumulating data concerning its diverse physiological functions. The disturbances in melatonin secretion are observed in different pathological conditions involving pineal regions, but it is not ascertained if those disturbances present any clinical implications. The aim of this work was to examine whether pineal gl...

Nocturnal synthesis of melatonin in the pineal gland is controlled by a circadian rhythm in arylalkylamine N-acetyltransferase (AANAT) enzyme activity. In the rodent, Aanat gene expression displays a marked circadian rhythm; release of norepinephrine in the gland at night causes a cAMP-based induction of Aanat transcription. However, additional transcriptional control mechanisms exist. Homeobox...

In this immunohistochemical study we investigate the presence of vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP) and neuropeptide Y (NPY) during embryonic development in the sheep pineal gland. We use ten ovine embryos at different stages of development (117 to 150 days of prenatal development). The VIP positive fibers were observed along the blood vessels, entering the pineal gland through the pineal caps...

Several functional and morphological studies have been conducted on the pineal gland in many mammalian species; however, no published reports are available on the role of pineal gland on the gonadal development before and after eyelids separation in puppies. Therefore, this study aimed to trace the postnatal histo-morphological changes in the pineal gland and gonads of puppies before (2, 10 and...