The function of the placental hormone human placental lactogen (hPL) is to

Correct Answer: A

Rationale: Human placental lactogen (hPL), from the placenta, prepares breasts for lactation by stimulating mammary growth and shifts maternal metabolism to favor fetal nutrition. It doesn't nourish the placenta or regulate menstruation (absent in pregnancy). 'All' is incorrect. Breast preparation distinguishes hPL's role, vital for postpartum milk production, contrasting with placental or cycle functions.

Correct Answer: B

Rationale: The posterior pituitary stores and releases antidiuretic hormone (ADH) and oxytocin, synthesized in the hypothalamus, via neural connections ADH conserves water, oxytocin aids childbirth/lactation. The adrenal cortex produces mineralocorticoids (e.g., aldosterone) and glucocorticoids (e.g., cortisol), not these. The thyroid secretes T3, T4, and calcitonin, unrelated to ADH/oxytocin. The pineal gland releases melatonin for sleep cycles. Posterior pituitary's neurohypophyseal role as a storage/release site distinguishes it, critical for hypothalamic hormone delivery, unlike steroid or metabolic glands.

Correct Answer: A

Rationale: Hyperthyroidism, excess thyroid hormone (T3/T4), is treated with anti-thyroid drugs, beta blockers, or surgery not synthetic thyroid hormone (e.g., levothyroxine), which treats hypothyroidism by replacing deficient hormone. The question lacks full options, but the answer 'synthetic thyroid hormone' fits as non-treatment for excess states. This distinction clarifies therapeutic goals, reducing T3/T4 versus supplementing, critical for managing thyroid overactivity.

Correct Answer: D

Rationale: The endocrine system secretes hormones into the bloodstream, reaching distant target cells (e.g., insulin from pancreas to muscles), alters metabolism (e.g., thyroxine boosts energy use), and has prolonged effects (e.g., cortisol's stress response lasts hours), unlike rapid neural signals. Each trait holds: blood transport ensures systemic reach, metabolic shifts adapt physiology, and slow, sustained action contrasts with fleeting nerve impulses. All are true, distinguishing endocrine function as a cohesive, long-acting regulator, critical for homeostasis, unlike partial or unrelated properties.

Correct Answer: D

Rationale: The hypothalamus regulates heart rate (via autonomic nerves), temperature (thermoregulatory center), and water balance (ADH via posterior pituitary), but doesn't secrete FSH follicle-stimulating hormone comes from the anterior pituitary, stimulated by hypothalamic GnRH. Hypothalamus controls pituitary, not producing gonadotropins itself. FSH secretion's absence distinguishes it, highlighting hypothalamic oversight versus pituitary execution, critical for endocrine hierarchy.