A SEX DIFFERENCE IN THE HUMAN BRAIN AND ITS RELATION TO TRANSSEXUALITY

被引:417
作者
ZHOU, JN
HOFMAN, MA
GOOREN, LJG
SWAAB, DF
机构
[1] NETHERLANDS INST BRAIN RES,GRAD SCH NEUROSCI,1105 AZ AMSTERDAM,NETHERLANDS
[2] FREE UNIV AMSTERDAM HOSP,DEPT ENDOCRINOL,1007 MB AMSTERDAM,NETHERLANDS
关键词
D O I
10.1038/378068a0
中图分类号
O [数理科学和化学]; P [天文学、地球科学]; Q [生物科学]; N [自然科学总论];
学科分类号
07 ; 0710 ; 09 ;
摘要
TRANSSEXUALS have the strong feeling, often from childhood onwards, of having been born the wrong sex. The possible psychogenic or biological aetiology of transsexuality has been the subject of debate for many years(1,2). Here we show that the volume of the central subdivision of the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis (BSTc), a brain area that is essential for sexual behaviour(3,4), is larger in men than in women. A female-sized BSTc was found in male-to-female transsexuals. The size of the BSTc was not influenced by sex hormones in adulthood and was independent of sexual orientation. Our study is the first to show a female brain structure in genetically male transsexuals and supports the hypothesis that gender identity develops as a result of an interaction between the developing brain and sex hormones(5,6).
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页码:68 / 70
页数:3
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