The thyroid is where the thyroidal hormones T3 and T4 are produced.
As with adrenal glands, thyroid activity is regulated by a control center. Using TRH, the hypothalamus stimulates the production of TSH by the pituitary gland, which in turn stimulates the thyroid.
Thyroidal hormones exert negative feedback on the hypothalamus and the pituitary gland (elevated levels of thyroidal hormones causes a decrease in the production of TRH and TSH).
The role of thyroidal hormones is essentially to activate metabolism. Thus at normal levels, they play a role in thermogenetics (the production of heat in the body in order to maintain a constant temperature) and in proteidic anabolism. At excessive levels, they develop catabolic activity associated with energy inefficiency.
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