Sexual differentiation of avian brain and behavior: current views on gonadal hormone-dependent and independent mechanisms.
Gonadal hormones are known to act during development to establish permanent sex differences in the anatomy and function of the vertebrate brain. They also act on the adult brain to activate reproductive behaviors. However, there are wide gaps in our understanding of how sexually dimorphic neural circuits translate into sex differences in behavior and other CNS functions. Moreover, not all sexually dimorphic properties of the adult brain can be attributed to known effects of gonadal hormones during development or adulthood, and factors other than gonadal steroids may contribute to these sex differences. This paper reviews sexual differentiation and the role of gonadal steroids and non-gonadal factors on sexually dimorphic development of the avian brain.
Schlinger
B A
BA
Department of Physiological Science, University of California, Los Angeles 90095-1927, USA. Schlinge@lifesci.ucla.edu
D000818:Animals; D001717:Birds / Q000502:physiology*; D001923:Brain Chemistry / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D012739:Gonadal Steroid Hormones / Q000502:physiology*; D008297:Male; D012733:Sex Differentiation / Q000502:physiology*; D012726:Sexual Behavior, Animal / Q000502:physiology*; D014828:Vocalization, Animal / Q000502:physiology
D012739:Gonadal Steroid Hormones