Testosterone Amplifies Pre-programmed Male Behaviors

[Butterfly]

Testosterone Amplifies Pre-programmed Male Behaviors
TS-SI
04 May, 2010


http://ts-si.org/biology/24796-testosterone-amplifies-pre-programmed-male-behaviors


A study in the journal Neuron demonstrates that direct action of testosterone, the prototypical male  hormone, is unnecessary for masculinizing the  brain  and behavior. This is new and surprising information about how sex hormones control masculinization of the  brain  during development and drive male-specific behaviors in adults.

"It was known that testosterone and estrogen are essential for typical male behaviors in many vertebrate species," explains the study's senior author, Dr. Nirao M. Shah from the Department of Anatomy at the University of California, San Francisco.