title: Sex differences in brain-derived neurotrophic factor signaling: Functions and implications.
abstract: Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) regulates diverse processes such as neuronal survival, differentiation, and plasticity. Accumulating evidence suggests that molecular events that direct sexual differentiation of the brain interact with BDNF signaling pathways. This Mini-Review first examines potential hormonal and epigenetic mechanisms through which sex influences BDNF signaling. We then examine how sex-specific regulation of BDNF signaling supports the development and function of sexually dimorphic neural circuits that underlie male-specific genital reflexes in rats and song production in birds. Finally, we discuss the implications of sex differences in BDNF signaling for gender-biased presentation of neurological and psychiatric diseases such as Alzheimer's disease. Although this Mini-Review focuses on BDNF, we try to convey the general message that sex influences brain functions in complex ways and underscore the requirement for and challenge of expanding research on sex differences in neuroscience. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Neuroscience, State Key Laboratory of Neuroscience, CAS Center for Excellence in Brain Science and Intelligence Technology, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China.|University of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.
authors.forename: Yi-Chao
authors.initials: YC
authors.lastname: Wei
authors.affiliation: Institute of Neuroscience, State Key Laboratory of Neuroscience, CAS Center for Excellence in Brain Science and Intelligence Technology, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China.|University of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.
authors.forename: Shao-Ran
authors.initials: SR
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Institute of Neuroscience, State Key Laboratory of Neuroscience, CAS Center for Excellence in Brain Science and Intelligence Technology, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China.
authors.forename: Xiao-Hong
authors.initials: XH
authors.lastname: Xu
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001921:Brain / Q000378:metabolism*; D019208:Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor / Q000378:metabolism*; D044127:Epigenesis, Genetic; D006801:Humans; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000378:metabolism; D009422:Nervous System Diseases / Q000378:metabolism; D009473:Neuronal Plasticity / Q000502:physiology; D020813:Receptor, trkB / Q000378:metabolism; D012727:Sex Characteristics; D015398:Signal Transduction / Q000502:physiology*
chemical_list: D019208:Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor; D020813:Receptor, trkB
keywords: BDNF signaling; TrkB receptor; brain-derived neurotrophic factor; neural survival; sexual differentiation; synaptic plasticity