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Cited by 308Sexual Differentiation and DisordersNeuroendocrine regulation and behaviorHypothalamic control of reproductive hormones

Comparing postnatal development of gonadal hormones and associated social behaviors in rats, mice, and humans

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Bell, Margaret R·2018·Endocrinology
DOI 10.1210/en.2018-00220PMC PMC6692888
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Abstract

Postnatal development includes dramatic changes in gonadal hormones and the many social behaviors they help regulate, both in rodents and humans. Parental care-seeking is the most salient social interaction in neonates and infants, play and prosocial behaviors are commonly studied in juveniles, and the development of aggression and sexual behavior begins in peripubertal stages but continues through late adolescence into adulthood. Although parental behaviors are shown after reproductive success in adulthood, alloparenting behaviors are actually high in juveniles as well. These behaviors are sensitive to both early-life organizational effects of gonadal hormones and later-life activational regulation. However, changes in circulating gonadal hormones and the display of the previous behaviors over development differ between rats, mice, and humans. These endpoints are of interest to endocrinologist, toxicologists, and neuroscientists because of their relevance to mental health disorders and their vulnerability to effects of endocrine-disrupting chemical exposure. As such, the goal of this mini-review is to succinctly describe and relate the postnatal development of gonadal hormones and social behaviors to each other, over time, and across animal models. Ideally, this will help identify appropriate animal models and age ranges for continued study of both normative development and in contexts of environmental disruption.

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  • At the developmental stage in the paradigm, there is a notable disparity in the levels of testosterone and estradiol.

    “At the developmental stage in our paradigm there is a notable disparity in the levels of testosterone and estradiol (24).”

    From Puberty Blocker, Leuprolide, Reduces Sex Differences in Rough-and-Tumble Play and Anxiety-like Behavior in Juvenile Rats (2024) · cites this paper as [24]

    The Rats section reports different developmental patterns: estradiol peaks around postnatal day 15, while testosterone remains low from days 1 to 19. That supports a difference in their developmental trajectories, but the cited paper does not identify the stage used in the citing authors’ paradigm or establish a direct disparity between the two hormones’ levels at that stage. The Conclusion’s figure caption says its curves are scaled to each hormone’s own maximum, rather than to one another; page numbers were not provided in our copy. (LLM, conf=0.76)

    Experimental — accuracy not yet measured

  • Previous studies have shown that the profile of estrogen levels between males and females are similar throughout the juvenile and prepubescent periods.

    “Previous studies have shown that the profile of estrogen levels between males and females are similar throughout the juvenile and prepubescent periods (24).”

    From Puberty Blocker, Leuprolide, Reduces Sex Differences in Rough-and-Tumble Play and Anxiety-like Behavior in Juvenile Rats (2024) · cites this paper as [24]

    The Rats section reports that estradiol levels remain low and equivalent in male and female rats until P39. The claim does not specify rats: the Humans section says girls have higher estradiol levels than boys from age two until puberty, and the Mice section says longitudinal levels in males are undetermined. The similarity is therefore supported for rats, not across the species covered by the source. Page numbers are unavailable in our copy. (LLM, conf=0.88)

    Experimental — accuracy not yet measured

  • Many social behaviors exhibit sex differences and are sensitive to gonadal hormones and endocrine disruptors.

    “Many social behaviors exhibit sex differences and are sensitive to gonadal hormones and endocrine disruptors (Bell, 2018).”

    From Excess Neonatal Testosterone Causes Male-Specific Social and Fear Memory Deficits in Wild-Type Mice (2025) · cites this paper as Bell, 2018

  • Testosterone levels in males are higher than females at birth and during adolescence.

    “Testosterone levels in males are higher than females at birth and during adolescence (24), which is replicated in the observed levels of testosterone in our control rodents.”

    From Puberty Blocker, Leuprolide, Reduces Sex Differences in Rough-and-Tumble Play and Anxiety-like Behavior in Juvenile Rats (2024) · cites this paper as [24]

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Authors
Bell, M. R.
Affiliations
DePaul University (US)
Corresponding author
Bell, Margaret R
ORCID
Bell, Margaret R
Venue
Endocrinology
Publisher
The Endocrine Society
Published
2018-05-14
Volume
159
Issue
7
Pages
2596-2613
ISSN
  • 0013-7227 (ISSN-L)
  • 1945-7170
DOI
10.1210/en.2018-00220
PMC
PMC6692888
OpenAlex
W2804691881
Cited by
308
References
285
Citations by year
2026: 51 · 2025: 58 · 2024: 55 · 2023: 35 · 2022: 44 · 2021: 35 · 2020: 22 · 2019: 5 · 2018: 3
FWCI
1.59
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • Endocrinology (publishedVersion)
  • Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
Funders
  • Foundation for the National Institutes of Health (T32-ES07247, F32-ES023291)
  • DePaul University
Topics
  • Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Molecular Biology › Sexual Differentiation and Disorders
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Neuroendocrine regulation and behavior
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Reproductive Medicine › Hypothalamic control of reproductive hormones
Keywords
postnatal development, gonadal hormones, social behavior, parental care, alloparenting, play behavior, prosocial behavior, aggression, sexual behavior, puberty, organizational effects, endocrine disruptors, animal models, rats, mice, human, mental illness
MeSH terms
Animals, Female, Humans, Male, Progesterone, Sexual Behavior, Gonadal Steroid Hormones, Social Behavior, Gonadal Hormones, Mice, Rats

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