Differentiation of the sexually dimorphic nucleus in the preoptic area of the rat brain is determined by the perinatal hormone environment.
The volume of a sexually dimorphic nucleus in the preoptic area (SDN-POA) of the rat brain is several fold larger in males than in females. When female rats were treated pre- and postnatally with testosterone propionate (TP) their SDN-POA developed equivalent in size to that of normal males. The results indicate that the gross morphological sex difference in SDN-POA volume is exclusively controlled by the hormonal environment during the critical period of sexual brain differentiation.
D000818:Animals; D001835:Body Weight / Q000187:drug effects; D005260:Female; D008297:Male; D009929:Organ Size / Q000187:drug effects; D011247:Pregnancy; D011301:Preoptic Area / Q000187:drug effects*; D051381:Rats; D011919:Rats, Inbred Strains; D012733:Sex Differentiation / Q000187:drug effects*; D013739:Testosterone / Q000494:pharmacology*
D013739:Testosterone