Hormonal mechanisms underlying aberrant sexual differentiation in male rats prenatally exposed to alcohol, stress, or both

Archives of Sexual Behavior,  February, 2002  by O. Byron Ward

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O. Byron Ward (1,3)

Ingeborg L. Ward (1)

John H. Denning (1)

Shelton E. Hendricks (2)

Jeffrey A. French (2)

INTRODUCTION

A compelling biological principle underlying the differentiation of sexual behaviors is the axiom that mammals have a basic tendency to develop along feminine lines. What prevents expression of the default female traits is exposure to testosterone (T) or one of its metabolites during perinatal life. Normally, the gonads of males release appreciable quantities of androgen during this period, leading to masculinization and defeminization of reproductive behaviors, and sexually dimorphic anatomical structures, including the nervous system. Females normally develop ...