Abstract
MY earlier investigations on the neural gland of tunicates may perhaps throw some light on the origin of the pituitary body in vertebrates. I have adduced evidence1–4 that the neural gland (plus ciliated pit) of tunicates is the homologue of the vertebrate pituitary body. The mouth of the ciliated pit, then, is the homologue of the opening of Rathke's pouch, and as such does not enter into the structure of the pituitary proper. The stage in the development of the tetrapod pituitary at which Rathke's pouch is open is thus a ‘recapitulation’ of a phylogenetic step, still extant in ascidians.
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References
Carlisle, D. B., Pubbl. Staz. Zool. Napoli, 22, 192 (1950).
Carlisle, D. B., Nature, 166, 737 (1950).
Carlisle, D. B., J. Exp. Biol., 28, 463 (1951).
Carlisle, D. B., Quart. J. Micr. Sci., 92, 201 (1951).
Carlisle, D. B., Pubbl. Staz. Zool. Napoli, 22, 146 (1950).
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CARLISLE, D. Origin of the Pituitary Body of Chordates. Nature 172, 1098 (1953). https://doi.org/10.1038/1721098a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/1721098a0
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