You are a professor supervising first year medical students.One student is examining the adrenal gland of his cadaver."Wow!" he exclaims,"This person must have had an endocrine problem.Their adrenal gland lacks any kind of duct connecting it to the bloodstream.The hormones could only have oozed out." How do you respond?
A)"That makes their adrenal gland similar to an exocrine organ."
B)"Do you see signs of adrenal insufficiency,such as low fat stores or muscle degeneration?"
C)"That's normal.The hormones ooze out and diffuse into nearby capillaries,which is why endocrine glands are sometimes called 'ductless glands'."
D)"Look carefully and you will see the nerves that transport the hormones into the bloodstream."

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The statement made by the student is partially correct. Endocrine glands are indeed called ductless glands because they secrete hormones directly into the bloodstream or surrounding tissue. The lack of a duct connecting the adrenal gland to bloodstream is normal and characteristic of an endocrine gland.

You Are a Professor Supervising First Year Medical Students