Original Article

Journal of Investigative Dermatology (1974) 62, 191–201; doi:10.1111/1523-1747.ep12676783

ENDOCRINOLOGIC CONTROL TO THE DEVELOPMENT AND ACTIVITY OF THE HUMAN SEBACEOUS GLAND

Peter E Pochi and John S Strauss

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Abstract

It is clear from the foregoing considerations that the development and secretory activity of the sebaceous gland of man is influenced by hormonal factors. Androgenic steroids, particularly of gonadal origin, are the hormones principally responsible for these effects and the only ones shown to have a direct stimulatory effect on glandular activity. Adrenal androgens may be responsible for early sebaceous gland maturation in late childhood, at a time when minor degrees of acne sometimes occur. Glucocorticoids appear to function in a permissive capacity, the anterior pituitary hormones primarily affecting the sebaceous gland indirectly through stimulation of their respective target organs, i.e., the gonads and the adrenal gland. The role of the thyroid and other endocrine glands is unknown and needs to be studied.

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