Cross-talk between adrenal medulla and adrenal cortex in stress.

Response of the endocrine system to stress is characterized by the concomitant release of catecholamines from the adrenal medulla and of glucocorticoids from the adrenal cortex. Therefore, the activity of these two embryologically different endocrine organs that are united under one organ capsule has to be synchronized. The data summarized here indicate an involvement of intra-adrenal interactions in this coordination of the body's response to stress.