CoChat
Sign Up
Cited by 9Visual perception and processing mechanismsMemory and Neural MechanismsNeuroscience and Neuropharmacology Research

Testosterone induces off-line perceptual learning

Open access
Wright, Nicholas D., Edwards, Thomas, Fleming, Stephen M., Dolan, Raymond J.·2012·Psychopharmacology
DOI 10.1007/s00213-012-2769-yPMC PMC3496538
Open this paper in CoChat — free accountOpen PDF

Abstract

RATIONALE: Perceptual learning operates on distinct timescales. How different neuromodulatory systems impact on learning across these different timescales is poorly understood. OBJECTIVES: Here, we test the causal impact of a novel influence on perceptual learning, the androgen hormone testosterone, across distinct timescales. METHODS: In a double-blind, placebo- controlled, cross-over study with testosterone, subjects undertook a simple contrast detection task during training sessions on two separate days. RESULTS: On placebo, there was no learning either within training sessions or between days, except for a fast, rapidly saturating, improvement early on each testing day. However, testosterone caused "off-line" learning, with no learning seen within training sessions, but a marked performance improvement over the days between sessions. This testosterone-induced learning occurred in the absence of changes in subjective confidence or introspective accuracy. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings show that testosterone influences perceptual learning on a timescale consistent with an influence on "off-line" consolidation processes.

The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.

Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.

A few free checks a day · papers already verified open instantly · results are public

Integrity signals

Registry

Crossref · 10.1007/s00213-012-2769-y

Cites

2 of 2 references verified0 citation errors · 0 not checkable

Statistics

Claims the paper makes

The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.

Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.

A few free checks a day · papers already verified open instantly · results are public

Claims other papers make about this one

Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?

  • Metacognitive efficiency shows moderate test-retest reliability, both across different sessions of the same experiment and across different days.

    “Metacognitive efficiency shows moderate test-retest reliability, both across different sessions of the same experiment (Ais et al. 2016, Fleming et al. 2010) and across different days (Wright et al. 2012).”

    From Metacognition and Confidence: A Review and Synthesis (2024) · cites this paper as Wright et al. 2012

Self-check

Percentages, sums and reported differences re-computed from the paper’s own numbers.

The self-check needs the paper’s full text.

Cites

Flagged first, then by citations

Research works printed but not linked: 34

  1. Aleman A Bronk E Kessels RP Koppeschaar HP van Honk J A single administration of testosterone improves visuospatial ability in young women Psychoneuroendocrinology 2004 29 612 617 10.1016/S0306-4530(03)00089-1 15041084 · DOI
  2. Archer J Testosterone and human aggression: an evaluation of the challenge hypothesis Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2006 30 319 345 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2004.12.007 16483890 · DOI
  3. Bao S Chan VT Merzenich MM Cortical remodelling induced by activity of ventral tegmental dopamine neurons Nature 2001 412 79 83 10.1038/35083586 11452310 · DOI · Paper page
  4. Bertin A Richard-Yris M-A Möstl E Lickliter R Increased yolk testosterone facilitates prenatal perceptual learning in Northern bobwhite quail (Colinus virginianus) Horm Behav 2009 56 416 422 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2009.07.008 19646986 · DOI
  5. Bos PA Terburg D van Honk J Testosterone decreases trust in socially naïve humans Proc Natl Acad Sci 2010 107 9991 10.1073/pnas.0911700107 20498056 PMC2890465 · DOI · Paper page
  6. Cherrier MM Asthana S Plymate S Baker L Matsumoto AM Peskind E Raskind MA Brodkin K Bremner W Petrova A LaTendresse S Craft S Testosterone supplementation improves spatial and verbal memory in healthy older men Neurology 2001 57 80 88 10.1212/WNL.57.1.80 11445632 · DOI
  7. Coates JM, Herbert J (2008) Endogenous steroids and financial risk taking on a London trading floor. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 105:6167 PMC2329689 18413617
  8. Dabbs JM Hargrove MF Age, testosterone, and behavior among female prison inmates Psychosom Med 1997 59 477 480 9316179
  9. Dudai Y Consolidation: fragility on the road to the engram Neuron 1996 17 367 370 10.1016/S0896-6273(00)80168-3 8816699 · DOI
  10. Eisenegger C Naef M Snozzi R Heinrichs M Fehr E Prejudice and truth about the effect of testosterone on human bargaining behaviour Nature 2010 463 356 359 10.1038/nature08711 19997098 · DOI
  11. Fleming SM, Weil RS, Nagy Z, Dolan RJ, Rees G (2010) Relating Introspective Accuracy to Individual Differences in Brain Structure. Science 329:1541–1543 PMC3173849 20847276
  12. Fontani G Lodi L Felici A Corradeschi F Lupo C Attentional, emotional and hormonal data in subjects of different ages Eur J Appl Physiol 2004 92 452 461 10.1007/s00421-004-1108-3 15138835 · DOI
  13. Fuxjager MJ Forbes-Lorman RM Coss DJ Auger CJ Auger AP Marler CA Winning territorial disputes selectively enhances androgen sensitivity in neural pathways related to motivation and social aggression Proc Natl Acad Sci 2010 107 12393 12398 10.1073/pnas.1001394107 20616093 PMC2901436 · DOI
  14. Fuxjager MJ, Montgomery JL, Marler CA (2011) Species differences in the winner effect disappear in response to post-victory testosterone manipulations. Proc R Soc B Biol Sci 278:3497–3503 PMC3189368 21490015
  15. Gilbert CD Early perceptual learning Proc Natl Acad Sci 1994 91 1195 1197 10.1073/pnas.91.4.1195 8108386 PMC43123 · DOI
  16. Houwing NS Maris F Schnabel PG Bagchus WM Pharmacokinetic study in women of three different doses of a new formulation of oral testosterone undecanoate, Andriol Testocaps Pharmacotherapy 2003 23 1257 1265 10.1592/phco.23.12.1257.32707 14594344 · DOI
  17. Janowsky JS Thinking with your gonads: testosterone and cognition Trends Cogn Sci 2006 10 77 82 10.1016/j.tics.2005.12.010 16386941 · DOI
  18. Janowsky JS Chavez B Orwoll E Sex steroids modify working memory J Cogn Neurosci 2000 12 407 414 10.1162/089892900562228 10931767 · DOI
  19. Karni A Bertini G Learning perceptual skills: behavioral probes into adult cortical plasticity Curr Opin Neurobiol 1997 7 530 535 10.1016/S0959-4388(97)80033-5 9287202 · DOI
  20. Karni A Sagi D The time course of learning a visual skill Nature 1993 365 250 252 10.1038/365250a0 8371779 · DOI
  21. Leranth C, Petnehazy O, MacLusky NJ (2003) Gonadal hormones affect spine synaptic density in the CA1 hippocampal subfield of male rats. Journal of Neuroscience 23:1588–1592 PMC6741990 12629162
  22. Leranth C, Prange-Kiel J, Frick KM, Horvath TL (2004) Low CA1 Spine Synapse Density Is Further Reduced by Castration in Male Non-Human Primates. Cereb Cortex 14:503–510 15054066
  23. Lou HC, Skewes JC, Thomsen KR, Overgaard M, Lau HC, Mouridsen K, Roepstorff A (2011) Dopaminergic stimulation enhances confidence and accuracy in seeing rapidly presented words. J Vis 11(2), article 15 21346001
  24. McConnell SEA Alla J Wheat E Romeo RD McEwen B Thornton JE The role of testicular hormones and luteinizing hormone in spatial memory in adult male rats Horm Behav 2012 61 479 486 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2012.01.003 22265851 · DOI
  25. McEwen BS Stress, sex, and neural adaptation to a changing environment: mechanisms of neuronal remodeling Ann N Y Acad Sci 2010 1204 38 59 10.1111/j.1749-6632.2010.05568.x PMC2946089 20840167 · DOI
  26. Postma A Meyer G Tuiten A van Honk J Kessels RP Thijssen J Effects of testosterone administration on selective aspects of object-location memory in healthy young women Psychoneuroendocrinology 2000 25 563 575 10.1016/S0306-4530(00)00010-X 10840169 · DOI
  27. Robertson EM Pascual-Leone A Miall RC Current concepts in procedural consolidation Nat Rev Neurosci 2004 5 576 582 10.1038/nrn1426 15208699 · DOI · Paper page
  28. Roelfsema PR van Ooyen A Watanabe T Perceptual learning rules based on reinforcers and attention Trends Cogn Sci 2010 14 64 71 10.1016/j.tics.2009.11.005 20060771 PMC2835467 · DOI
  29. Rokem A Silver MA Cholinergic enhancement augments magnitude and specificity of visual perceptual learning in healthy humans Curr Biol 2010 20 1723 1728 10.1016/j.cub.2010.08.027 20850321 PMC2953574 · DOI
  30. Sapienza P Zingales L Maestripieri D Gender differences in financial risk aversion and career choices are affected by testosterone Proc Natl Acad Sci 2009 106 15268 10.1073/pnas.0907352106 19706398 PMC2741240 · DOI
  31. Seitz A Watanabe T A unified model for perceptual learning Trends Cogn Sci 2005 9 329 334 10.1016/j.tics.2005.05.010 15955722 · DOI
  32. Trainor BC Kyomen HH Marler CA Estrogenic encounters: how interactions between aromatase and the environment modulate aggression Front Neuroendocrinol 2006 27 170 179 10.1016/j.yfrne.2005.11.001 16376420 PMC2080681 · DOI
  33. Wobber V Hare B Maboto J Lipson S Wrangham R Ellison PT Differential changes in steroid hormones before competition in bonobos and chimpanzees Proc Natl Acad Sci 2010 107 12457 10.1073/pnas.1007411107 20616027 PMC2906573 · DOI · Paper page
  34. Wright ND, Bahrami B, Johnson E, Di Malta G, Rees G, Frith CD, Dolan RJ (2012) Testosterone disrupts human collaboration by increasing egocentric choices. Proc R Soc B Biol Sci 279:2275–2280 PMC3321715 22298852

Cited by

Sorted by citations

Authors
Wright, N. D., Edwards, T., Fleming, S. M., & Dolan, R. J.
Affiliations
Wellcome Centre for Human Neuroimaging (GB)
Corresponding author
Wright, Nicholas D.
ORCID
Venue
Psychopharmacology
Publisher
Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Published
2012-06-17
Volume
224
Issue
3
Pages
451-457
ISSN
  • 0033-3158 (ISSN-L)
  • 1432-2072
DOI
10.1007/s00213-012-2769-y
PMC
PMC3496538
OpenAlex
W2148694415
Cited by
9
References
2
Citations by year
2023: 3 · 2018: 1 · 2017: 2 · 2016: 1 · 2015: 1 · 2014: 1
FWCI
0.33
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
cc-by
Locations
  • Psychopharmacology (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • UCL Discovery (University College London) (submittedVersion)
  • Max Planck Digital Library (submittedVersion, other-oa)
  • MPG.PuRe (Max Planck Society) (submittedVersion, other-oa)
Funders
Wellcome Trust (091593, 078865/Z/05/Z, 078865, 091593/Z/10/, 098362, 999998, 091593/Z/10/Z)
Topics
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Visual perception and processing mechanisms
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Memory and Neural Mechanisms
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience › Neuroscience and Neuropharmacology Research
Keywords
testosterone, perceptual learning, offline learning, memory consolidation, androgens, contrast detection, neuromodulation, subjective confidence
MeSH terms
Adult, Analysis of Variance, Double-Blind Method, Female, Humans, Learning, Neuropsychological Tests, Photic Stimulation, Testosterone, Time Factors, Contrast Sensitivity, Cross-Over Studies, Young Adult

About these checks

Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.

Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.

Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.

What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›

Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review