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Females follow a more "compact" early human brain development model than males. A case-control study of preterm

George T Vasileiadis1, R Terry Thompson, Victor K M Han

  • 1School of Clinical Sciences, Division of Human Development, The University of Nottingham, Nottingham, United Kingdom. georgios.vasileiadis@nottingham.ac.uk

Pediatric Research
|August 12, 2009
PubMed

Insights

Human brain development shows early sex differences. Females exhibit more compact cortical folding relative to brain size, suggesting distinct developmental trajectories for males and females.

Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Developmental Biology
  • Human Anatomy

Background:

  • Sexual differentiation of the human brain is complex, especially during early development.
  • Understanding early brain development is crucial for identifying potential neurodevelopmental differences.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate in vivo evidence of sexually dimorphic brain development in preterm infants.
  • To compare cerebral volume and cortical folding patterns between male and female preterm infants.

Main Methods:

  • A case-control study involving 20 age-matched preterm males and females.
  • Acquisition of 3D images using 3 Tesla Magnetic Resonance Imaging (3 T MRI).
  • Comparison of cerebral volume and cortical folding area (FA) between sexes.

Main Results:

  • Females had smaller cerebra than males, even after accounting for overall size.
  • Cortical folding area (FA) increased with volume by a power of 4/3 in both groups.
  • Females showed larger cortical FA relative to cerebral volume compared to males.

Conclusions:

  • The study provides in vivo evidence for sexually dimorphic early human brain development.
  • The more compact female brain model may correlate with sex-based differences in neural circuitry and cognitive functions.

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