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Hormones and Sexual Development: Role in Differentiation and Behavior, Study notes of Psychology of Human Development

Eastern Kentucky University (EKU)Psychology of Human Development

An overview of various types of hormones, their functions, and their role in sexual development and behavior. Topics covered include steroid hormones, peptide hormones, the pituitary gland, sexual differentiation, and sexual behavior in both males and females. Rat studies and human hormonal changes during puberty and menstrual cycles are also discussed.

Typology: Study notes

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Hormones and Sexual Behavior
Reproductive Behavior
Mechanisms of Hormone Action
• 3 Types of Hormone
– _______________ hormones and peptide hormones
– ______________________ hormones
– _________________hormones: estrogens, progesterone, and androgens
protein hormones and peptide hormones
• act by binding to receptors on surface of cell
• releases second messenger inside the cell (often Cyclic AMP)
• activates a number of enzymes that can alter metabolism of cell
or ability of ions to cross membrane
Steroid hormones
• released by __________________________________
• enter cell and attach to receptors in the cytoplasm
• which move to the nucleus and affect which genes will be
expressed
• elevate blood sugar, enhance metabolism, helps body
_______________________________________________
Sex Hormones: estrogens, progesterone, and
androgens
• ___________________________________________
• can react with receptors on cell membrane
• sometimes increase number of dendritic spines
• attach to a receptor that turns a gene on or off
• called sex-limited genes because effect is much stronger in one
sex that in the other (eg: breast development gene)
Steroids and negative feedback
• When athlete takes steroids to develop muscle, high levels of
steroids produce ____________________ on anterior pituitary
• anterior pituitary cuts back on production of hormones that
control gonads
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Hormones and Sexual Behavior

Reproductive Behavior

Mechanisms of Hormone Action

  • 3 Types of Hormone
    • _______________ hormones and peptide hormones
    • ______________________ hormones
    • _________________hormones: estrogens, progesterone, and androgens

protein hormones and peptide hormones

  • act by binding to receptors on surface of cell
  • releases second messenger inside the cell (often Cyclic AMP)
  • activates a number of enzymes that can alter metabolism of cell or ability of ions to cross membrane

Steroid hormones

  • released by __________________________________
  • enter cell and attach to receptors in the cytoplasm
  • which move to the nucleus and affect which genes will be expressed
  • elevate blood sugar, enhance metabolism, helps body

Sex Hormones: estrogens, progesterone, and

androgens

• ___________________________________________

  • can react with receptors on cell membrane
  • sometimes increase number of dendritic spines
  • attach to a receptor that turns a gene on or off
  • called sex-limited genes because effect is much stronger in one sex that in the other (eg: breast development gene)

Steroids and negative feedback

  • When athlete takes steroids to develop muscle, high levels of steroids produce ____________________ on anterior pituitary
  • anterior pituitary cuts back on production of hormones that control gonads
  • decreased testis size, breast growth, increased cholesterol levels, depression

Control of Hormone Release

  • Pituitary Gland
    • ________________________________________: endocrine gland
      • synthesizes six hormones that control other glands
      • controlled by the hypothalamus
    • _________________________ or neurohypophisis: neural connection
      • half gland half nucleus
      • connected to the hypothalamus
      • produces releasing hormones which flow through the blood to the anterior pituitary

Organizing effects of Sex Hormones

• _____________________________________________

  • determine if brain and body will develop as female or male
  • mostly occur during sensitive periods
    • shortly before and after birth in rats and birds
    • 3rd or 4th month in humans
  • occur any time in life when a hormone temporarily activates a particular response
  • last hours, weeks, or months

Sex Differences in the Gonads and

Hypothalamus

  • at early stage of prenatal development, _________________ has identical gonads.
  • Both male and female have set of ___________________ and a set of ___________________________

Development of Male Gonads

  • Male has extra Y chromosome that causes primitive gonads to develop _________________________
  • developing testes produce ____________________________
  • testosterone causes Wolffian ducts to develop into seminal vesicles and vas deferens
  • peptide hormone “______________________ causes Mullerian ducts to degenerate

• ____________________________________________________

____________________

Mechanism of action of organizing effects of

testosterone

  • testosterone enters the cell
  • converted to estradiol by __________________________
  • evidence:
    • androgens that don’t aromatize are not effective in masculinizing
    • chemicals that block aromatization block organizing effects

The mystery

  • estradiol is __________________, if testosterone must be converted to estradiol to enable it to masculinize the fetus, why doesn’t the estradiol produced by the female fetus masculinize it
  • many fetal mammals produce alpha-fetoprotein (not present in adults)
  • alpha-fetoprotein binds with the naturally produced estrogen and
  • testosterone can enter the cell and be converted to estradiol to do its work

Sex Differences in Nonreproductive

Characteristics

  • males tend to be ___________________________________
  • females live longer and devote more attention to infant care
  • males more _______________________________________
  • female monkeys exposed to elevated levels of testosterone during sensitive period more aggressive, more threatening gestures

Human studies

  • girls who were exposed to elevated androgen levels during prenatal development (because of a gene that causes inadequate cortisol production and excess production of androgens from the adrenal gland) tend to spend more time than most other girls playing with boy’s toys, more likely than other girls to choose boys as their favorite playmate.
  • May be _______________________ by parents and others because of somewhat masculine appearance.

Activating Effects of Sex Hormones

Sexual Behavior

  • activate sexual response by ___________________________________
    • estrogens enlarge area of skin that activates pudendal nerve
  • ventromedial nucleus and medial preoptic area (MPOA) of hypothalamus - _____________________________________ increases during copulation - _____________________________________ of MPOA increases male typical sex behavior in males and female typical in females - __________________________ to MPOA eliminates or alters sexual behavior

Effect of Hormones on Sexual Behavior in Men

    • decrease in testosterone generally decrease sexual activity
  • treatment of sex offenders
    • ____________________________: blocks binding of testosterone to receptors
    • ____________________________: decrease testosterone production
  • problem is they have to take the drug
    • newer drug under development that can be given as injection

Effect of Hormones on Sexual Behavior in

Women

  • menstrual cycle
    • follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) released after menstrual cycle over » promotes growth of a follicle which nurtures the ovum (egg) » follicle develops more and more FSH receptors and becomes more sensitive to it
    • estradiol produced by follicle(when mature) leads to sudden surge in release of
    • luteinizing hormone from anterior pituitary.
    • This causes follicle to release the ovum
    • remnant of the follicle (corpus luteum) produces progesterone
    • Progesterone level rises inhibiting production of LH
    • Levels of LH, FSH, estradiol and progesterone decline
    • if egg not fertilized the lining of the uterus is cast off (menstruation) and cycle begins again

Birth Control Pill

  • combination pill
    • contains both ________________________________________
  • high level of estrogen __________________ of FSH so follicle doesn’t develop
  • progesterone ________________________ of LH so even if one develops it won’t be released

the maternal behaviors if left with the babies for a few days

  • ________________________ in baby rats stimulate hormone production which supports parenting behavior

Parental Behavior - Brain Areas

  • MPOA increased activity in both hormone dependent and experience dependent phase
  • ____________________________ parenting behavior in both phases
  • experience dependent phase related to areas that process information from the ___________________________________________
  • vomeronasal organ responds to ______________________________
  • unfamiliar infant pheremones inhibit maternal behavior

Parental Behavior - Brain Areas

  • early _______________________________________________
    • parent is not familiar with the newborn’s pheremones so vomeronasal would inhibit maternal behavior -- but
    • hormone effects (oxytocin) in MPOA strong enough to overcome this
  • later ________________________________________________
    • mother has become familiar with the babies pheremones and now parenting behavior maintained by experience even though mothers hormones are returning to non-pregnant levels

Variations in Sexual Development and

Orientation

Determinants of Gender Identity

  • ______________________: how we identify sexually and what we call ourselves.
  • Not the same as _____________________________ differences
    • the activities a society encourages for one sex or the other
    • determined by culture and upbringing
    • can have female gender identity but reject your cultures gender role
  • Some people clearly dissatisfied with assigned gender, a small number (transsexuals) insist on sex change
  • Not the same as _____________________________ which refers to selection of sex partners.

Intersexes or Pseudohermaphrodites

  • exposure to _______________________________________________________________ » mother’s adrenal produces excess testosterone and other androgens » certain antimiscarriage drugs » placenta may lack the enzyme that converts testosterone to estrogen
  • genitals do not match normal development for their genetic sex
  • can surgically alter child to give them the appearance of one sex or the other but
  • do not know how to raise these children, results of studies are

Testicular Feminization

  • also known as ___________________________________________________
  • XY chromosome (genetic male)
  • body lacks mechanism that allows _______________________ so develop mostly as female
  • has two internal testes, no ovaries or uterus
  • reared as female, takes female gender identity
  • don’t know about it until puberty
  • breasts develop, hips broaden, doesn’t menstruate
  • surgically enlarge the small vagina

Nature vs Nurture in Sexual Development

  • Certain genetic males in the Dominican Republic were born with a gene that prevents penis growth early in life.
  • Low levels of hormone that converts testosterone to DHT (5-alpha-dihydrotestosterone) which masculinizes the genitials
  • probably normal testosterone levels so __________________________________________
  • reared as girls until age 12 then grew a penis
  • reassigned as a boy
  • nearly all cases developed clear male gender identity and directed sexual interest toward women

Nature vs Nurture in Sexual Development

  • Accidental penis removal during circumcision
  • parents advised to have him surgically altered and rear as a girl
  • never adjusted to female identity
  • played with male toys, wanted to live as a boy
  • eventually changed name and had surgery to restore penis
  • got married, and adopted wife’s children

Possible Biological Bases of Sexual Orientation

  • For most people sexual orientation just happens, develops at an early age, do not know how or why it develops as it did.
  • Sexual orientation is like left or right handedness, it is not something that people choose or that they can easily change

Hormones

  • What is true of rats may not be true of humans
  • types of sexual response shown in male rats (arching back, etc.) have _______________________________ in humans
  • Ellis, Ames, Peckham, & Burke, 1988
    • contacted 283 mothers of homosexual and heterosexual men
    • mothers of homosexuals
  • Bailey et al couldn’t replicate this result

Hormones

  • What about hormones in female homosexuality
  • in late 50’s and early 60’s some women took diethylstilbestrol (DES) to prevent miscarriage.
  • DES can exert ____________________________ effects similar to testosterone
  • Ehrhardt et al 1985
    • 30 adult females whose mothers took DES
    • 7 reported some degree of homosexual or bisexual response
    • in control group only 1 reported homosexual or bisexual response

Brain Anatomy

  • in heterosexuals, males brains differ in certain areas. Do homosexual’s brains resemble heterosexual males or heterosexual females
  • Gorski & Allen 1992
    • _____________________________________ in homosexual males as large as women’s
  • Suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN_______________ in male homosexuals than in male heterosexuals - male rats deprived of testosterone during the critical period cycle in sexual preference preferring male partners early in day, female partners later in day - cycle could be controlled by SCN
  • LeVay 1991
  • interstitial nucleus 3
  • part of sexually dimorphic nucleus of Medial Preoptic Area (MPOA)
  • 41 people
  • 16 heterosexual males
  • 6 heterosexual women
  • 19 homosexual males
  • heterosexual males had much _____________________ interstitial nucleus 3’s
  • problems with LeVay
  • all subjects died of AIDS » need to replicate with patients who didn’t have AIDS
  • were brain differences present since childhood or did differences develop in adulthood, perhaps as a result of sexual activity
  • we don’t know what interstitial nucleus 3 does in humans » damage to IN3 in rats decreases sexual behavior but no change in sexual preference » damage to IN3 in ferrets causes shift to preferring male partners » there were significant differences in the group means but groups overlapped quite a bit