1 THE DEVELOPMENT OF AN IN VIVO MODEL FOR INVESTIGATION INTO THE SIGNIFICANCE OF PULSATILE GLUCOCORTICOID RELEASE IN THE HYPOTHALAMO-PITUITARY-ADRENAL AXIS OF THE RAT Crispin Charles Raymond Wiles Henry Wellcome Laboratories for Integrative Neuroscience and Endocrinology University of Bristol March 2010 A dissertation submitted to the University of Bristol in accordance with the requirements of the degree of Master of Science (MSc) in the Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry Word Count: 15,791