What are some effects of prostaglandins in the body?

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Hi, everybody. Let's look at our next problem. It says, determine which statements about the possible effects of prostaglandins are correct. So we have four possible statements. Let's just think, briefly remind ourselves of what prostaglandins are. And then we'll work our way through these statements. So remember that prostaglandins are, these hormone like molecules, all of them are synthesized from a raccoon acid as a precursor, which is a polyunsaturated fatty acid with 20 carbons. And they are involved in many bodily processes. So they are involved in inflammation. They affect the body's blood pressure and they influence smooth muscle contractions. Perhaps the most famous, perhaps um effect of prostaglandins is that they're involved in labor because they are involved in the muscle contractions of the uterus. So let's look at our statements here. Semen one says prostaglandins are rapidly broken down in the body but still exert strong physiological effects. Well, as we just discussed, they have very strong physiological effects. These are big major processes here, but they are indeed rapidly broken down in the ha in the body. They have pretty short half lives. So they're metabolized quite quickly. So this statement number one is correct. Semen, number two says all prostaglandins lower blood pressure. So we mentioned that prostaglandins affect blood pressure. Well, there's a reason why I put effect, they can lower blood pressure, but they can also raise blood pressure by vasoconstriction. Again, there are different prostaglandins even though they're all synthesized from the same precursor. So they can have varied effects. So statement two is not correct. Then statement three says some prostaglandins are responsible for stimulating both contraction and relaxation in the smooth muscle of the uterus. So I did mention that they're involved in smooth muscle contraction. However, they can do both again because they're different prostaglandins. So some stimulate contraction, but some stimulate relaxation. So statement three also correct. And then finally, statement, Boer says prostaglandins are produced in response to injury but do not play a role in inflammation or pain. Well, you can probably already guess this is going to be incorrect since we mentioned that they were involved in inflammation. So the part of the statement that's correct is they are indeed produced in response to injury. So when injury occurs, arachidonic acid is converted into prostaglandins. But the whole purpose of them being converted, they're being produced as in response to injury is that they then modulate the inflamma inflammatory response. So they are involved in inflammation and the sensation of pain in the injured area. So we cross out the words do not because they do play a role in inflammation or pain or and pain. So once again, our statements here about the possible effects of prostaglandin that are correct are statements one and statements three. See you in the next video.

What are some effects of prostaglandins in the body?

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Key Concepts

Prostaglandins

Inflammation

Pain Perception