Sex differences in neural mechanisms of social and non-social threat monitoring

Abstract Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is associated with the altered functional connectivity of 3 neurocognitive networks that are hypothesized to be central to the symptomatology of ASD: the salience network (SN), default mode network (DMN), and central executive network (CEN). Due to the considerably higher prevalence of ASD in males, however, previous studies examining these networks in ASD have used primarily male samples. It is thus unknown how these networks may be differentially impacted among females with ASD compared to males with ASD, and how such differences may compare to those observed in neurotypical individuals. Here, we investigated the functional connectivity of the SN, DMN, and CEN in a large, well-matched sample of girls and boys with and without ASD (169 youth, ages 8–17). Girls with ASD displayed greater functional connectivity between the DMN and CEN than boys with ASD, whereas typically developing girls and boys differed in SN functional connectivity only. Together, these results demonstrate that youth with ASD exhibit altered sex differences in these networks relative to what is observed in typical development, and highlight the importance of considering sex-related biological factors and participant sex when characterizing the neural mechanisms underlying ASD.

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Sex Differences and Commonalities in the Impact of a Palatable Meal on Thalamic and Insular Connectivity

Nutrients ◽

10.3390/nu12061627 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 12 (6) ◽

pp. 1627

Author(s):

Lisa Kilpatrick ◽

Teodora Pribic ◽

Barbara Ciccantelli ◽

Carolina Malagelada ◽

Dan M. Livovsky ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Sex Differences ◽

Well Being ◽

Neural Mechanisms ◽

Healthy Individuals ◽

Resonance Imaging ◽

Subjective Responses ◽

Biological Variable ◽

Before And After ◽

Meal Ingestion ◽

The Impact

The neural mechanisms underlying subjective responses to meal ingestion remain incompletely understood. We previously showed in healthy men an increase in thalamocortical, and a decrease in insular-cortical connectivity in response to a palatable meal. As sex is increasingly recognized as an important biological variable, we aimed to evaluate sex differences and commonalities in the impact of a well-liked meal on thalamic and anterior insular connectivity in healthy individuals. Participants (20 women and 20 age-matched men) underwent resting-state magnetic resonance imaging (rsMRI) before and after ingesting a palatable meal. In general, the insula showed extensive postprandial reductions in connectivity with sensorimotor and prefrontal cortices, while the thalamus showed increases in connectivity with insular, frontal, and occipital cortices, in both women and men. However, reductions in insular connectivity were more prominent in men, and were related to changes in meal-related sensations (satiety and digestive well-being) in men only. In contrast, increases in thalamic connectivity were more prominent in women, and were related to changes in satiety and digestive well-being in women only. These results suggest that brain imaging may provide objective and sex-specific biomarkers of the subjective feelings associated with meal ingestion.

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Sex differences in behavioral and hormonal response to social threat: Commentary on Taylor et al. (2000).

Psychological Review ◽

10.1037/0033-295x.109.4.745 ◽

2002 ◽

Vol 109 (4) ◽

pp. 745-750 ◽

Cited By ~ 85

Author(s):

David C. Geary ◽

Mark V. Flinn

Keyword(s):

Sex Differences ◽

Social Threat ◽

Hormonal Response

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Serotonin and arginine–vasopressin mediate sex differences in the regulation of dominance and aggression by the social brain

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences ◽

10.1073/pnas.1610446113 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 113 (46) ◽

pp. 13233-13238 ◽

Cited By ~ 44

Author(s):

Joseph I. Terranova ◽

Zhimin Song ◽

Tony E. Larkin ◽

Nathan Hardcastle ◽

Alisa Norvelle ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Sex Differences ◽

Psychiatric Disorders ◽

Arginine Vasopressin ◽

Social Engagement ◽

Social Stress ◽

Stress Disorder ◽

Neural Mechanisms ◽

Targeted Drugs ◽

Social Brain ◽

The Social

There are profound sex differences in the incidence of many psychiatric disorders. Although these disorders are frequently linked to social stress and to deficits in social engagement, little is known about sex differences in the neural mechanisms that underlie these phenomena. Phenotypes characterized by dominance, competitive aggression, and active coping strategies appear to be more resilient to psychiatric disorders such as posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) compared with those characterized by subordinate status and the lack of aggressiveness. Here, we report that serotonin (5-HT) and arginine–vasopressin (AVP) act in opposite ways in the hypothalamus to regulate dominance and aggression in females and males. Hypothalamic injection of a 5-HT1a agonist stimulated aggression in female hamsters and inhibited aggression in males, whereas injection of AVP inhibited aggression in females and stimulated aggression in males. Striking sex differences were also identified in the neural mechanisms regulating dominance. Acquisition of dominance was associated with activation of 5-HT neurons within the dorsal raphe in females and activation of hypothalamic AVP neurons in males. These data strongly indicate that there are fundamental sex differences in the neural regulation of dominance and aggression. Further, because systemically administered fluoxetine increased aggression in females and substantially reduced aggression in males, there may be substantial gender differences in the clinical efficacy of commonly prescribed 5-HT–active drugs such as selective 5-HT reuptake inhibitors. These data suggest that the treatment of psychiatric disorders such as PTSD may be more effective with the use of 5-HT–targeted drugs in females and AVP-targeted drugs in males.

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Behavior and Fos activation reveal that male and female rats differentially assess affective valence during CTA learning and expression

PLoS ONE ◽

10.1371/journal.pone.0260577 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 16 (12) ◽

pp. e0260577

Author(s):

Alyssa Bernanke ◽

Elizabeth Burnette ◽

Justine Murphy ◽

Nathaniel Hernandez ◽

Sara Zimmerman ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Sex Differences ◽

D2 Receptor ◽

Brain Regions ◽

D1 Receptor ◽

Neural Mechanisms ◽

Female Rats ◽

Post Traumatic Stress ◽

Affective Valence ◽

Male And Female Rats ◽

Males And Females

Females are more affected by psychiatric illnesses including eating disorders, depression, and post-traumatic stress disorder than males. However, the neural mechanisms mediating these sex differences are poorly understood. Animal models can be useful in exploring such neural mechanisms. Conditioned taste aversion (CTA) is a behavioral task that assesses how animals process the competition between associated reinforcing and aversive stimuli in subsequent task performance, a process critical to healthy behavior in many domains. The purpose of the present study was to identify sex differences in this behavior and associated neural responses. We hypothesized that females would value the rewarding stimulus (Boost®) relative to the aversive stimulus (LiCl) more than males in performing CTA. We evaluated behavior (Boost® intake, LiCl-induced behaviors, ultrasonic vocalizations (USVs), CTA performance) and Fos activation in relevant brain regions after the acute stimuli [acute Boost® (AB), acute LiCl (AL)] and the context-only task control (COT), Boost® only task (BOT) and Boost®-LiCl task (BLT). Acutely, females drank more Boost® than males but showed similar aversive behaviors after LiCl. Females and males performed CTA similarly. Both sexes produced 55 kHz USVs anticipating BOT and inhibited these calls in the BLT. However, more females emitted both 22 kHz and 55 kHz USVs in the BLT than males: the latter correlated with less CTA. Estrous cycle stage also influenced 55 kHz USVs. Fos responses were similar in males and females after AB or AL. Females engaged the gustatory cortex and ventral tegmental area (VTA) more than males during the BOT and males engaged the amygdala more than females in both the BOT and BLT. Network analysis of correlated Fos responses across brain regions identified two unique networks characterizing the BOT and BLT, in both of which the VTA played a central role. In situ hybridization with RNAscope identified a population of D1-receptor expressing cells in the CeA that responded to Boost® and D2 receptor-expressing cells that responded to LiCl. The present study suggests that males and females differentially process the affective valence of a stimulus to produce the same goal-directed behavior.

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The Effects of Family Socioeconomic Status on Psychological and Neural Mechanisms as Well as Their Sex Differences

Frontiers in Human Neuroscience ◽

10.3389/fnhum.2018.00543 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 12 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Hikaru Takeuchi ◽

Yasuyuki Taki ◽

Rui Nouchi ◽

Ryoishi Yokoyama ◽

Yuka Kotozaki ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Socioeconomic Status ◽

Sex Differences ◽

Neural Mechanisms ◽

Family Socioeconomic Status

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Do you see the “face”? Individual differences in face pareidolia

Journal of Pacific Rim Psychology ◽

10.1017/prp.2019.27 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 14 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Liu-Fang Zhou ◽

Ming Meng

Keyword(s):

Sex Differences ◽

Individual Differences ◽

Personality Traits ◽

Face Perception ◽

Clinical Applications ◽

Neural Mechanisms ◽

Developmental Factors ◽

The Face ◽

The Individual ◽

The Brain

Abstract People tend to see faces from non-face objects or meaningless patterns. Such illusory face perception is called face pareidolia. Previous studies have revealed an interesting fact that there are huge individual differences in face pareidolia experience among the population. Here, we review previous findings on individual differences in face pareidolia experience from four categories: sex differences, developmental factors, personality traits and neurodevelopmental factors. We further discuss underlying cognitive or neural mechanisms to explain why some perceive the objects as faces while others do not. The individual differences in face pareidolia could not only offer scientific insights on how the brain works to process face information, but also suggest potential clinical applications.

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Sex Differences in Neural Mechanisms Underlying Implicit Symmetry Processing

Cortex ◽

10.1016/s0010-9452(08)70440-4 ◽

2006 ◽

Vol 42 (6) ◽

pp. 963-969 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Silke Lux ◽

John C. Marshall ◽

Susanne Neufang ◽

Gereon R. Fink

Keyword(s):

Sex Differences ◽

Neural Mechanisms

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