title: Hormonal contraceptives, menstrual cycle and brain response to faces.
abstract: Both behavioral and neuroimaging evidence support a female advantage in the perception of human faces. Here we explored the possibility that this relationship may be partially mediated by female sex hormones by investigating the relationship between the brain's response to faces and the use of oral contraceptives, as well as the phase of the menstrual cycle. First, functional magnetic resonance images were acquired in 20 young women [10 freely cycling and 10 taking oral contraception (OC)] during two phases of their cycle: mid-cycle and menstruation. We found stronger neural responses to faces in the right fusiform face area (FFA) in women taking oral contraceptives (vs freely cycling women) and during mid-cycle (vs menstruation) in both groups. Mean blood oxygenation level-dependent response in both left and right FFA increased as function of the duration of OC use. Next, this relationship between the use of OC and FFA response was replicated in an independent sample of 110 adolescent girls. Finally in a parallel behavioral study carried out in another sample of women, we found no evidence of differences in the pattern of eye movements while viewing faces between freely cycling women vs those taking oral contraceptives. The imaging findings might indicate enhanced processing of social cues in women taking OC and women during mid-cycle.
authors.affiliation: Rotman Research Institute, 3560 Bathurst St., Toronto, Ontario M6A 2E1, Canada. tpaus@research.baycrest.org.
authors.forename: Klara
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Marecková
authors.forename: Jennifer S
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Perrin
authors.forename: Irum
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Nawaz Khan
authors.forename: Claire
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Lawrence
authors.forename: Erin
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Dickie
authors.forename: Doug A
authors.initials: DA
authors.lastname: McQuiggan
authors.forename: Tomás
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Paus
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001921:Brain / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000502:physiology*; D002560:Cerebrovascular Circulation / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D003278:Contraceptives, Oral, Hormonal / Q000097:blood / Q000494:pharmacology*; D004967:Estrogens / Q000097:blood; D005133:Eye Movements / Q000187:drug effects; D005145:Face; D005260:Female; D007839:Functional Laterality; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008597:Menstrual Cycle / Q000187:drug effects; D008598:Menstruation / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D010100:Oxygen / Q000097:blood; D011374:Progesterone / Q000097:blood; D013997:Time Factors; D014795:Visual Pathways / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D014796:Visual Perception / Q000187:drug effects*; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D003278:Contraceptives, Oral, Hormonal; D004967:Estrogens; D011374:Progesterone; D010100:Oxygen