Sex-related differences in cortical function after medial frontal lesions in rats

The effects of sex on the performance of 4 spatial mazes (Morris water task, landmark task, radial arm maze, and egocentric radial arm maze) were studied in male and female rats given medial frontal lesions. Operated rats from both sexes were impaired at all of the tasks, but the frontal males were much less impaired than frontal females on the Morris task and the radial arm maze, both of which require animals to use multiple visual-spatial cues for their successful solution. Males also performed better on the egocentric maze. In contrast, frontal females performed better than frontal males at the landmark task, which is best solved by using a single spatial cue. The only sex difference in unoperated rats was a small advantage for females on the egocentric task. The sex differences may reflect an underlying difference in cortical organization or a differential response to cortical lesion in males and females.