Q. 35

[admin]

[admin]

A is a good answer, B is more specific to the problem and to the question of adaptive significance. However, this may still be too close to call for some students so the question has been altered. Given that the AAMC designed a scaled score and that they ocasionally add test questions, this will not affect your score. Good reasoning though.

[admin]

What you have suggested is certainly interesting but not consistent with the way hormones function in the human body. Normal function includes essentially no secretion or secretion at very low concentrations except when stimulated, and then through feedback loops, a return to homeostasis. What you are suggesting would require that, during the organism's equilibrium state, hormones are secreted in significant concentrations such that their concentrations can be modulated up or down to have different effects. Each hormone would therefore have 2 directly opposing functions. If that could only be true then that would eliminate so many endocrine diseases including diabetes.

NB. for those of you who have done endocrinology (definitely not a requirement for the MCAT!) will appreciate the fact that certain hormones can modulate effects depending on the rate of increase, the rythm/pulsation of increases (ie GnRF, gonadotropins), etc, which is not under consideration here.

[admin]

bump