Summarize the hormonal events that comprise the human female menstrual cycle. What will be an ...

Answer: The anterior pituitary starts the cycle by the secretion of FSH, which acts on the ovarian follicles to secrete estradiol into the blood stream. Increasing estradiol levels act on the anterior pituitary to produce a surge of luteinizing hormone (LH), which causes a follicle to rupture, thereby releasing the ovum. The ruptured follicle (corpus luteum) secretes estradiol and progesterone, which prepare the uterine lining for implantation of the ovum (if fertilized). If no implantation occurs, then estradiol/progesterone secretion stops, and the uterine lining is shed, thus resulting in blood flow (menstruation).