Endocrine Function
The liver plays a central role in the metabolism of hormones and
hormone-binding proteins.[115]
It synthesizes (angiotensinogen,
thrombopoietin, insulin-like growth factor 1[137]
)
and inactivates (aldosterone, estrogens, androgens, antidiuretic hormone) a wide
variety of hormones. Nearly half the insulin produced by the pancreas never reaches
the systemic circulation because it is degraded during a single passage through the
liver.[138]
[139]
Thyroxine (T4
), the major secretory product of the thyroid gland, is
actively taken up by the liver and converted to triiodothyronine (T3
)
or inactivated.
