Sex hormones and male homosexuality in comparative perspective

Animal research has demonstrated the modifiability of sex-dimorphic mating behavior by hormone and brain manipulation, especially in subprimate mammals, and has led to radical attempts at treating human homosexuality by psychosurgery and to the suggestion of preventing homosexuality by prenatal hormone manipulation. This article reviews psychoendocrine studies of human homosexuality — the effects of hormone treatments on sexual orientation, the association of clinical endocrine syndromes with homosexuality, sex hormone measurements in homosexual subjects, and the issue of prenatal endocrine influences on human sexual orientation. The available studies, often deficient in methodology, have produced conflicting and largely negative results as to a hormonal theory of human homosexuality. Unfortunately, there is hardly any overlap between psychoendocrine studies on sexual orientation in man and on sex-dimorphic mating behavior in subhuman mammals that would allow systematic comparisons. A major alternate theory of human homosexuality has been derived from learning theory, and this position has been strengthened by the recent development of partially successful behavior therapy approaches to the change of sexual orientation. There is currently a lack of animal experimentation that could assist in formulating a learning-based etiological theory of human homosexuality. Since the influence of hormones relative to learning on sexual behavior appears to diminish along the evolutionary scale, animal models need to include manipulation of both hormonal and learning conditions.     

Development of male gender identity/role and a sexual orientation towards women in a 46,XY subject with an incomplete form of the androgen insensitivity syndrome

Transsexualism and homosexuality have been theorized to originate in the male from insufficient androgenization of the brain. For verification of this hypothesis clinical science must rely on subjects with an abnormal prenatal/perinatal endocrine history. A case of a 33-year-old 46,XY subject with an incomplete form of androgen insensitivity syndrome (AIS) is presented. In adulthood the only genital sign of masculinization is a clitoris of 4 cm; the vagina is normal size. The diagnosis AIS was verified by androgen receptor studies. At birth there was confusion as to the sex of the newborn. Originally, the subject was assigned to the male sex, but this decision was reversed 5 days after birth and the subject was reared as a girl. At age 30 the subject applied for gender reassignment treatment to the male sex. Upon psychological evaluation the gender identity was unambiguously male and the sexual orientation was exclusively towards women. The estrogen feedback effect on LH, regarded by some as a marker of the sexual differentiation of the neuroendocrinium was negative before orchiectomy but positive after orchiectomy. Our observation demonstrates that in 46,XY subjects a male gender identity and a sexual orientation towards women can develop with a strikingly lower-than-normal level of biological action of androgens.     

Sexual Orientation in Women with Classical or Non-classical Congenital Adrenal Hyperplasia as a Function of Degree of Prenatal Androgen Excess

46,XX individuals with classical congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH) due to deficiency of the enzyme, 21-hydroxylase, show variable degrees of masculinization of body and behavior due to excess adrenal androgen production. Increased bisexuality and homosexuality have also been reported. This article provides a review of existing reports of the latter and presents a new study aimed at replicating the previous findings with detailed assessments of sexual orientation on relatively large samples, and at extending the investigation to the mildest form, non-classical (NC) CAH. Also, this is the first study to relate sexual orientation to the specific molecular genotypes of CAH. In the present study, 40 salt-wasters (SW), 21 SV (simple-virilizing), 82 NC, and 24 non-CAH control women (sisters and female cousins of CAH women) were blindly administered the Sexual Behavior Assessment Schedule (SEBAS-A, 1983 ed.; H. F. L. Meyer-Bahlburg & A. A. Ehrhardt, Privately printed). Most women were heterosexual, but the rates of bisexual and homosexual orientation were increased above controls not only in women with classical CAH, but also in NC women, and correlated with the degree of prenatal androgenization. Classifying women by molecular genotypes did not further increase the correlation. Diverse aspects of sexual orientation were highly intercorrelated, and principal components analysis yielded one general factor. Bisexual/homosexual orientation was (modestly) correlated with global measures of masculinization of non-sexual behavior and predicted independently by the degree of both prenatal androgenization and masculinization of childhood behavior. We conclude that the findings support a sexual-differentiation perspective involving prenatal androgens on the development of sexual orientation.     

多囊卵巢综合征神经内分泌病因机制的研究进展

多囊卵巢综合征(PCOS)是女性常见的生殖内分泌疾病,PCOS的典型特征是高雄激素血症、排卵障碍和卵巢多囊样改变.高雄激素血症通常是由垂体黄体生成激素(LH)脉冲分泌增加所致.多数PCOS女性表现为血清LH水平升高,LH脉动分泌频率升高.LH脉动分泌频率异常升高反映了促性腺激素释放激素(GnRH)神经回路异常活跃,提示...     

苗族和布依族女性血清神经内分泌激素水平及影响因素比较研究

目的:探讨苗族和布依族女性血清神经内分泌激素水平,并比较影响两民族神经内分泌激素水平差异的因素。方法:2011年3月～2012年6月在贵州省黔南州中医医院治未病中心进行健康体检女性人群共359例,按民族将其分为苗族组(173例)和布依族组(186例)。采用化学发光免疫法测定两组研究对象血清中催乳素(PRL)、促黄体生成素(LH)、睾酮(TST)、尿促卵泡素(TSH)及多巴胺(DA)水平。结果:苗族组女性血清TST水平明显高于布依族组,而LH、TSH及DA水平则低于布依族组,差异有统计学意义(P<0.05)。根据年龄将两民族女性分为4个年龄段,两组20～29岁、30～39岁、40～49岁、50～59岁年龄段女性LH、TST、TSH及DA水平比较差异有统计学意义(P<0.05);两组20～29岁和30～39岁年龄段女性PRL水平比较差异无统计学意义(P﹥0.05);两组40～49岁和50～59岁年龄段女性PRL水平比较差异有统计学意义(P<0.05)。结论:苗族女性血清神经内分泌激素水平与布依族女性存在民族差异。     

Androgens and male sexual function: a review of human studies.

The scope of this article will be a review and brief discussion of recently gathered information on androgens and sexual behavior in men. It will include experimental observations on the covariance between androgens, mainly testosterone, and sexual functioning in normal heterosexual men and studies on sexual dysfunction and homo-sexual behavior. The effects of castration, hypogonadal conditions, hormonal replacement, and endogenous testosterone variations on sexual behavior are examined. Further psychoendocrine studies, are necessary to evaluate the role of gonadal hormone production in impotency. Current pharmacological research does not furnish specific evidence, that the administration of androgens or preparations that stimulate the secretion of endogenous androgens have beneficial effects on functional impotence. After reviewing the studies on male homosexuality and androgen levels, the article concludes that it has not been established that homosexual men are characterized by abnormalities in plasma testosterone.     

肥胖与女性不孕症关系的研究进展

女性肥胖尤其是腹型肥胖可使其生育力降低,育龄期的肥胖妇女大多表现为月经失调、排卵稀发和雄激素过多.肥胖能够导致内分泌改变、影响血清性激素水平、改变其分泌方式和代谢途径及其在靶器官的作用水平,也是引起多囊卵巢综合征、高雄激素和代谢异常的关键因素.性激素分泌紊乱可能是引起肥胖并表现为不同类型和心血管代谢综合征的重要因素,故通过减轻体重可改善性激素紊乱的状况,降低雄激素水平,同时提高肥胖女性生育力.     

The role of adrenal and gonadal hormones in the pathogenesis of autoimmune polyarthritis

A growing body of recently published results suggest the role of adrenal androgens in the onset and development of chronic inflammatory process due to autoantigens. Dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) and dehydroepiandrosterone-sulphate (DHEA)--the major androgen products of the adrenal gland--have immunosuppressive effect inhibiting interleukin-6 production and substantially determining acute phase reaction. Decreased serum levels of DHEA and DHEAS has been observed in most of autoimmune diseases. Recent data suggest that adrenal hypoandrogenism comes from disturbed neuroendocrine, regulation due to hypothalamic effect of the inflammatory cytokines. On the other side, decreased adrenal androgen activity negatively influences the anabolic tonus of steroid hormone system while a relative enhancement of catabolic pressure occurs by the glucocorticoids. Moreover, the hypothalamus-hypophysis-gonadal axis can also be involved, resulting shifts in serum levels of prolactin, estrogens and gonadal androgens. All these hormonal changes can be summarised in decreasing the immunosuppressive tonus. This hypothesis connects the endocrine dysregulation with the development of autoimmune disorders. The new results promise not only a basically different theory of chronic inflammation but they will permit using new diagnostic tools as well as inducing substantially new and more effective therapeutic approaches.     

Effect of Intermittent Fasting on Reproductive Hormone Levels in Females and Males: A Review of Human Trials

Intermittent fasting is a popular diet for weight loss, but concerns have been raised regarding the effects of fasting on the reproductive health of women and men. Accordingly, we conducted this literature review to clarify the effects of fasting on reproductive hormone levels in humans. Our results suggest that intermittent fasting decreases androgen markers (i.e., testosterone and the free androgen index (FAI)) while increasing sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG) levels in premenopausal females with obesity. This effect was more likely to occur when food consumption was confined to earlier in the day (eating all food before 4 pm). In contrast, fasting did not have any effect on estrogen, gonadotropins, or prolactin levels in women. As for men, intermittent fasting reduced testosterone levels in lean, physically active, young males, but it did not affect SHBG concentrations. Interestingly, muscle mass and muscular strength were not negatively affected by these reductions in testosterone. In interpreting these findings, it is important to note that very few studies have been conducted on this topic. Thus, it is difficult to draw solid conclusions at present. From the limited data presented here, it is possible that intermittent fasting may decrease androgen markers in both genders. If this is the case, these results would have varied health implications. On the one hand, fasting may prove to be a valuable tool for treating hyperandrogenism in females with polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) by improving menstruation and fertility. On the other hand, fasting may be shown to decrease androgens among males, which could negatively affect metabolic health and libido. More research is warranted to confirm these preliminary findings.     

The Association Between 2D:4D Ratios and Sociosexuality: A Failure to Replicate

Researchers investigating the role of biological factors in the development and maintenance of interest in uncommitted sexual activity (i.e., sociosexuality) have reported that greater prenatal androgen action in women, as inferred by the ratio of the 2nd to 4th digit, is associated with greater interest in uncommitted sexual relationships, as measured by scores on the Sociosexuality Orientation Inventory (SOI) (Clark, 2004). This evidence suggesting a rather extensive role for prenatal factors in human mating behavior has been cited over 20 times in the literature. However, despite this indication of the impact of the research results on theories of human sex differences, there are no published replications of the original finding. For that reason, the association between 2D:4D ratios and sociosexuality was evaluated in two studies. In the first study, using methodology similar to the original report, no significant association between 2D:4D ratios and SOI scores was found either in women (n = 25) or men (n = 25). Next, to test the possibility that moderating factors, such as menstrual cycle phase and circulating testosterone levels, influence the strength of the association between 2D:4D ratios and sociosexuality, salivary hormone levels and behaviors were measured during the early follicular and mid-luteal phase of the menstrual cycle in women not using hormonal contraceptives (n = 40) and at two time points in women using oral contraceptives (n = 44) and in men (n = 42). Women and men in this study showed the expected sex differences in hormone levels and behavior. However, circulating hormones and 2D:4D ratios were unrelated to measures of sociosexuality obtained at the two test sessions. In sum, these data suggest that factors other than prenatal and circulating hormones explain the sex differences in self-reports of sociosexuality.     

妊娠期压力对母儿身心健康影响的研究进展

孕妇普遍存在妊娠期压力,但由于压力测量方法和界定压力水平的标准不一,各地妊娠期压力发生率尚不统一.高水平的妊娠期压力在体内下丘脑-垂体-肾上腺皮质系统和交感-肾上腺髓质系统等神经内分泌系统的调节下,不仅可导致早产、低出生体重、妊娠并发症等不良身体健康结局,还会出现孕妇产前焦虑、产后抑郁和子代神经行为发育障碍等影响心理健康的结局.该文就孕妇的妊娠期压力流行现状及其对母儿身心健康影响的研究进展进行综述.     

Sex Differences in College Students’ Free Drawings and Their Relationship to 2D:4D Ratio and Recalled Childhood Play Behavior

In a prior study, we observed that female-typical characteristics in elementary school girls’ drawings were correlated with a feminized digit ratio (2D:4D), a marker for prenatal androgen exposure. However, this observation was limited to older girls, suggesting that social factors mediate the relationship between 2D:4D and drawing. To examine the hypothesis that the influence of prenatal androgen on girls’ drawing is mediated by an effect of early androgens on sex-typical behavior, we examined 2D:4D, free drawings, and scores on the Recalled Childhood Gender Identity (RCGI) Questionnaire in a population of college students. Characteristics of participants’ free drawings were assessed and those that showed sex differences were compared with 2D:4D and RCGI scores. Men had smaller 2D:4D ratios than women, used fewer total colors, used fewer pinks, purples, and blues, and had higher gender-typical scores on the RCGI. Women’s drawings were more likely to contain flowers and animals and men’s drawings were more likely to represent sports. Within-sex RCGI and 2D:4D scores were not significantly correlated. Significant within-sex relationships between 2D:4D and RCGI and drawing behavior were observed but the effects appeared to be independent; the hypothesis that gender-typical childhood behavior mediates the effect of prenatal androgen on drawing characteristics was not supported.     

电视腹腔镜卵巢打孔治疗多囊卵巢综合征不孕患者22例临床分析

目的:探讨电视腹腔镜手术治疗多囊卵巢综合征(PCOS)不孕患者的临床疗效。方法:取2008年5月～2009年6月广州市妇女儿童医院妇科确诊PCOS患者进行电视腹腔镜下卵巢打孔术及输卵管通液术,手术前后分别测定血清黄体生成素(LH),卵泡刺激素(FSH),雄激素(T)水平,术后检测排卵情况,妊娠率及妊娠结果。结果:术后的LH及T水平较术前有显著下降,FSH及PRL水平无明显变化,术后有19例患者发生排卵,13例成功妊娠,3例在加用CC后排卵但未妊娠。结论:腹腔镜卵巢打孔术能明显改善CC抵抗PCOS患者的排卵和受孕机会,但打孔数多于8个有卵巢早衰可能,应控制在4～6个或以下,该方法可以推广应用。     

Energy balance and cancer: the role of sex hormones

Energy balance can affect the risk for hormone-related cancers by altering sex hormone levels. Energy intake and expenditure are difficult to measure in epidemiological studies, but a chronic excess of intake relative to expenditure leads to a high BMI, which can be accurately measured. In premenopausal women obesity has little effect on the serum concentration of oestradiol, but causes an increase in the frequency of anovular menstrual cycles and thus a reduction in progesterone levels; these changes lead to a large increase in the risk for endometrial cancer. but little change, or a small decrease, in the risk for breast cancer. In post-menopausal women oestradiol levels are not regulated by negative feedback, and obesity causes an increase in the serum concentration of bioavailable oestradiol; this factor causes increases in the risk for both endometrial cancer and breast cancer. The development of ovarian cancer appears to be related more strongly to the frequency of ovulation than to direct effects of circulating levels of sex hormones, and BMI is not clearly associated with the risk for ovarian cancer. In men, increasing BMI has little effect on bioavailable androgen levels, and any effect of obesity on prostate cancer risk is small.     

An Involvement and overtness measure for lesbians: Its development and relation to anxiety and social zeitgeist

The relationships among anxiety, degree of overtness in homosexuality, involvement in homosexuality, and occupational status were investigated to test prevalent hypotheses relating homosexuality and neuroticism. Sixty-three acknowledged lesbians completed the Manifest Anxiety and Defensiveness Scale (MAD), the Lesbian Degree of Involvement and Overtness Scales (DIOS), and a biographical data sheet. Reliability and validity indices for the DIOS are presented. Some findings were that anxiety was not related to degree of involvement in homosexuality, that anxiety was related to degree of overtness in low- but not in highstatus lesbians, and that the social Zeitgeist at the time of first lesbian activity was related to degree of overtness but not to degree of involvement in homosexuality. The results are discussed in terms of the relationship between social desirability and a hostile society. Additionally, comparisons of anxiety levels in homosexual and heterosexual women are presented and discussed. The results are interpreted as lending support to the emerging view of the homosexual as nonneurotic.     

多囊卵巢综合征卵巢源性高雄激素血症发生机制研究进展

高雄激素血症是多囊卵巢综合征（PCOS）典型的临床特征。卵巢是女性雄激素的主要来源,卵巢内的雄激素是胆固醇在类固醇激素合成酶的作用下合成的,其酶活性异常可引起雄激素水平的上升。本文对PCOS患者卵巢类固醇激素合成关键酶及促黄体生成素,胰岛素改变所导致的卵巢源性雄激素水平升高的形成机制作一综述。     

In the mood for sex: the value of androgens

Androgen substitution is increasingly being employed to enhance sexual desire in women based on the assumption that low androgen levels cause low sexual desire. Sexual functioning in women is complex; therefore, decreased sexual interest can have various causes. An adequate female sexual biopsychosocial model that includes the role of androgens has not yet been developed. Moreover, a higher or lower degree of sexual desire does not form a measure for sexual satisfaction. One group of women at risk for androgen deficiency are women with pathophysiological problems that affect androgen production in the ovaries and/or adrenal glands. The available literature indicates that androgen substitution, despite leading to supraphysiological androgen levels, improves some aspects of sexual functioning, especially in women who have undergone oophorectomy. What this means in terms of satisfaction with sexual functioning in these women is not clear. We believe that, from an evidence-based point of view, testosterone substitution should only be administered as adjuvant treatment to sexological counseling in women with low libido in combination with low bioavailable androgen levels because of insufficiency of ovarian and/or adrenal function and normal estrogen levels. The routine administration of androgens to endocrinologically healthy women who have complaints of decreased sexual interest is not based on available evidence.     

Visuospatial Performance on an Internet Line Judgment Task and Potential Hormonal Markers: Sex,Sexual Orientation,and 2D:4D

We investigated whether performance on a visuospatial line judgment task, the Judgment of Line Angle and Position-15 test (JLAP-15), showed evidence of sensitivity to early sex steroid exposure by examining how it related to sex, as well as to sexual orientation and 2D:4D digit ratios. Participants were drawn from a large Internet study with over 250,000 participants. In the main sample (ages 12–58 years), males outperformed females on the JLAP-15, showing a moderate effect size for sex. In agreement with a prenatal sex hormone hypothesis, line judgment accuracy in adults related to 2D:4D and sexual orientation, both of which are postulated to be influenced by early steroids. In both sexes, better visuospatial performance was associated with lower (more male-typical) digit ratios. For men, heterosexual participants outperformed homosexual/bisexual participants on the JLAP-15 and, for women, homosexual/bisexual participants outperformed heterosexual participants. In children aged 8–10 years, presumed to be a largely prepubertal group, boys also outperformed girls. These findings are consistent with the hypothesis that visuospatial ability is influenced by early sex steroids, although they do not rule out alternative explanations or additional influences. More broadly, such results support a prenatal sex hormone hypothesis that degree of androgen exposure may influence the neural circuitry underlying cognition (visuospatial ability) and sexual orientation as well as aspects of somatic (digit ratio) development.     

某地区妊娠早期妇女碘营养状况与甲状腺功能减退症的相关性分析

目的研究分析甘肃地区妊娠早期妇女碘营养的实际情况,探究妊娠早期妇女碘营养的情况与其甲状腺功能减退症之间存在的关系。方法选取2015年2月至2016年5月于甘肃省平凉市庄浪县计划生育服务站进行常规产前检查的早期妊娠妇女200例作为研究对象,采用分光光度法测定其在空腹状态下尿碘水平以及血清中的促甲状腺激素、血清游离甲状腺素水平。结果选取的200例中早期妊娠妇女中尿碘水平的范围为8.2~1 857.8mg/L,中位数为178.3mg/L,碘缺乏总例数为79例,所占比例为39.5%,尿碘异常患者总例数为121例,所占比例为60.5%;早期妊娠妇女不同碘水平状态下血清中的促甲状腺激素有明显差异(P0.05),但血清游离甲状腺素水平无显著差异(P0.05);碘摄入异常患者的甲状腺功能减退症发生率为7.1%(9/126),显著高于碘摄入正常者的1.4%(1/74),具有统计学差异(χ~2=3.661,P0.05)。结论甘肃省平凉市庄浪县地区妊娠早期妇女中碘摄取量普遍不足,存在着碘缺乏的现象,碘摄取量不同会明显影响促甲状腺激素水平,且可能是导致甲状腺功能减退症的重要影响因素。