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Updated: Jun 12, 2026
06:24
Establishment of Rat Models Mimicking Gender-affirming Hormone Therapies
Published on: January 10, 2025
Gender-related endocrinological dysfunction and mental disorders.
Maria Luisa Figueira1, Sílvia Ouakinin
1Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, Hospital Santa Maria, University of Lisbon, Lisbon, Portugal. ml.figueira@hsm.min-saude.pt
Current Opinion in Psychiatry
|May 25, 2010
Summary
Sex and gender influence stress response and vulnerability to psychiatric disorders like schizophrenia and affective disorders. Understanding these differences is key to explaining variations in mental health.
Area of Science:
- Neuroendocrinology
- Psychiatry
- Genetics
Background:
- Established link between endocrine and neuropsychiatric disorders.
- Sex and gender influence biological determinants of mental health.
- Endocrinological dysfunctions are risk factors for mental disorders.
Purpose of the Study:
- Review updated data on sex and gender differences in stress reactivity.
- Examine the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis in relation to psychiatric disorders.
- Explore the interplay of genetic expression, gender role, and stress in mental health.
Main Methods:
- Literature review of recent investigations.
- Analysis of stress reactivity mechanisms.
- Focus on stress-diathesis models.
Main Results:
- Gender and sexual dimorphism impact brain functions and health differences.
- Hormonal reactivity to stress, sex hormones, and gene-environment interactions are key mechanisms.
- Schizophrenia and affective disorders show distinct gender-based prevalence and clinical aspects.
Conclusions:
- Sex and gender significantly modulate stress reactivity and psychiatric disorder vulnerability.
- Early determinants of stress reactivity, genetic expression, and gender roles contribute to biological modulation.
- These factors help explain gender disparities in the prevalence and presentation of mental disorders.
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