Prothoracicotropic hormone
Prothoracicotropic hormone (PTTH) was the first insect hormone to be discovered. It was originally described simply as "brain hormone" by early workers such as Stefan Kopeć (1922) and Vincent Wigglesworth (1934), who realized that ligation of the head of immature insects could prevent molting or pupation of the body region excluded from the head if the ligation was performed before a critical age in the lifestage was reached. After a certain point the ligation had no effect and both sections of the insect would molt or pupate. However, implantation of a conspecific brain to a sessile ligated abdomen or an abdomen under diapause would induce molting or pupation. Thus, the brain was originally thought to be the source of the hormone that induces molting in insects.
Teresa Woodruff
Dr. Woodruff’s scientific successes started early in her career—in 1986, as a graduate student in the laboratory of Dr. Kelly Mayo at Northwestern University, she cloned the subunits that form the peptide hormones inhibin and activin, placing her at the forefront of modern reproductive molecular biology. She thrived within the strong collaborative environment of the Mayo and Schwartz labs—Neena B. Schwartz discovered inhibin in 1977 at Northwestern—allowing her to rapidly describe inhibin subunit regulation during the rat estrus cycle, publishing her results in "Science" in 1988. These peptide hormones are powerful and their absence causes sterility. This work was recognized in 2000 by the Endocrine Society Weitzman Award, given to a scientist of exceptional promise under the age of 40.