Cogprints

Testosterone and grasp-reflex differences in human neonates

Tan, Uner and Tan, Meliha (2001) Testosterone and grasp-reflex differences in human neonates. [Journal (Paginated)]

Full text available as:

[img] PDF
162Kb

Abstract

According to the Geschwind-Behan-Galaburda (GBG) hypothesis, prenatal testosterone (T) causes a slowing in the development of the left brain with a consequent compensatory growth in the right brain, creating a reverse organisation of the cerebral lateralisation. That is, left- and right-handedness might be associated with high and low prenatal T levels, respectively. To test this hypothesis, the relations of T levels (umbilical cord blood) to grasp-reflex strengths were studied in human neonates. Handedness was assessed by measuring the grasp-reflex strengths from the right and left hands in 10 trials from each hand alternatively. There were two handedness groups: right-handers (R-L significantly greater than zero) and left-handers (significantly smaller than zero). Contrary to the GBG model, the mean free T concentration was found to be significantly higher in right-handers than left-handers for males and females. There was no significant difference in the total T levels between right- and left-handers. Free T concentrations positively correlated with R-L grasp-reflex strengths, i.e. right-handedness increased as T increased, and left-handedness increased as T decreased. Contrary to these positive correlations, T negatively correlated with the grasp-reflex strengths from the right and left hands. These results partly supported the GBG hypothesis for this spinal-motor-asymmetry model. Total T did not significantly correlate with grasp-reflex strengths. The results suggest that prenatal T may at least play a role in prenatal determination of spinal motor lateralisation, with a possible consequent upward regulation of cerebral lateralisation.

Item Type:Journal (Paginated)
Keywords:testosterone, cerebral laterality, reflex, handedness, spinal cord, neonate
Subjects:Neuroscience > Neuroendocrinology
Neuroscience > Neuropsychology
ID Code:1439
Deposited By: Tan, Uner
Deposited On:08 Apr 2001
Last Modified:11 Mar 2011 08:54

References in Article

Select the SEEK icon to attempt to find the referenced article. If it does not appear to be in cogprints you will be forwarded to the paracite service. Poorly formated references will probably not work.

Bryden, M.P., McManus, I.C., & Bulman-Fleming, M.B. (1994). Evaluating the empirical support

for the Geschwind-Behan-Galaburda model of cerebral lateralization. Brain and Cognition, 26,

103-167.

Buonomano, D.V., & Merzenich, M.M. (1998). Cortical plasticity: From synapses to maps. Annual

Reviews of Neuroscience, 21, 149-186.

Clark, M.M., Crews, D.,& Galef, B.G. (1991). Concentrations of sex steroid hormones in pregnant

and fetal Mongolian gerbils. Physiology and Behavior, 49, 239-243.

Clark, M.M., Santamaria, B.T., Robertson, R.K., & Galef, B.G. (1998). Effects of gonadectomy in

infancy and adulthood on handedness in male and female Mongolian gerbils. Behavioral

Neurosience, 112, 1026-1029.

Clark, M.M., Von Saal, F.S., & Galef, B.G. (1992). Intrauterine positions and testosterone levels of

adult male gerbils are correlated. Physiology and Behavior, 51, 957-960..Corballis, M.C., & Morgan, M.J. (1978). On the biological basis of human laterality: I. Evidence for

a maturational left-right gradient. The Behavioral and Brain Sciences, 1, 261-269.

DoÈrner, G. (1976). Hormones and brain differentiation. Amsterdam: Elsevier.

Elkadi, S., Nicholls, M.E.R., & Clode, D. (1999). Handedness in opposite and the same-sex dizygotic

twins: Testing the testosterone hypothesis. NeuroReport 10, 333-336.

Filipkowski, R.K., Rydz, M., Berdel, B., Morys, J., & Kaczmarek, L. (2000). Tactile experience

induces c-fos expression in rat barrell cortex. Learning and Memory, 7, 116-122.

Finegan, J.J., Bartleman, B., & Wong, P.Y. (1989). A window for the study of prenatal sex hormone

influences on postnatal development. Journal of Genetic Psychology, 150, 191-112.

Geschwind, N., & Behan, P. (1982). Left-handedness: Association with immune disease, migraine,

and developmental learning disorder. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences USA, 79,

5097-5100.

Geschwind, N., & Galaburda, A.M. (1985). Cerebral lateralization, biological mechanisms,

associations, and pathology: I. A hypothesis and a program for research. Archives of Neurology,

42, 428-459.

Greenspan, F.S. (1991). Basic and clinical endocrinology . London: Appleton & Lange.

Grimshaw, G.M., Bryden, M.P., & Finegan, J.K. (1993). Relations between prenatal testosterone

and cerebral lateralization at age 10. Journal of Clinical and Experimental Neuropsychology ,

15, 39-40.

Grimshaw, G.M., Bryden, M.P., & Finegan, J.K. (1995). Relations between prenatal testosterone and

cerebral lateralization in children. Neuropsychology, 9, 68-79.

Halpern, D.F. (1994). Evaluating support for the Geschwind-Behan-Galaburda Model: With a rubber

ruler and a thumb on the scale. Brain and Cognition, 26, 185-190.

Hepper, P.G., McCartney, G.R., & Shannon, E.A. (1998). Lateralized behaviour in first trimester

human foetuses. Neuropsychologia, 36, 531-534.

Keefer, D.A., Stumpf, W.E., & Sar, M. (1973). Topographical localization of estrogen-concentrating

cells in the rat spinal cord following H-stradiol administration. Proceedings of the Society for

Experimental Biology and Medicine, 143, 414-417.

Kimura, D. (1996). Sex, sexual orientation and sex hormones influence human cognitive function.

Current Opinion in Neurobiology, 6, 259-263.

Kolb, B., & Whishaw, I.Q. (1998). Brain plasticity and behavior. Annual Review of Psychology, 49,

43-64.

Levitt, P., Barbe, M.F., Eagleson, K.L. (1997). Patterning and specification of the cerebral cortex.

Annual Review of Neuroscience, 20, 1-24.

Lorenz, K. (1937). Die Bildung des Instinktbegriffes. Naturwissenschaften, 25, 289-300.

McCartney, G., & Hepper, P. (1999). Development of lateralized behaviour in the human fetus from

12 to 27 weeks? gestation. Developmental Medicine of Child Neurology, 41, 83-86.

Moffat, S.D., & Hampson, E. (1996). Salivary testosterone levels in left- and right-handed adults.

Neuropsychologia, 34, 225-233.

Morgan, M.J. (1977). Embryology and inheritance of asymmetry. In S. Harnad, R.W. Doty, L.

Goldstein, J. Jaynes, & G. Krauthamer (Eds.), Lateralization in the nervous system. New York:

Academic Press.

Polack, S. (1960). The grasp response of the neonate: Its characteristics and interaction with tonic

neck reflex. Archives of Neurology, 3, 574-581.

Rosen, G.D., Sherman, G.F., & Galaburda, A.M. (1991). Ontogenesis of neocortical asymmetry: A

[3H] thymidine study. Neuroscience, 41, 779-790.

Sar, M., & Stumpf, W.E. (1977). Androgen concentration in motor neurons of cranial nerves and

spinal cord. Science, 197, 77-79.

Sanes, J.N., & Donoghue, J.P. (2000). Plasticity and primary motor cortex. Annual Reviews of

Neuroscience, 23, 393-415.

Simerly, R.B., Chang, C., Muramatsu, M., & Swanson, L.W. (1990). Distribution of androgen and

TESTOSTERONE AND GRASP REFLEX 191.estrogen receptor mRNA-containing cells in the rat brain: An in situ hybridization study. Journal

of Comparative Neurology, 294, 76-95.

Stefan, K., Kunesch, E., Cohen, L.G., Benecke, R., & Classen, J. (2000). Induction of plasticity in the

human motor cortex by paired associative stimulation. Brain, 123, 572-584.

Stirnimann, F. (1941). Greifversuche mit der Hand Neugeborener. Annual Paediatrie, 157, 17-27.

Tan, U. (1984). Lateral asymmetry of H-reflex recovery curves in cat: Evidence for a spinal motor

asymmetry. International Journal of Neuroscience, 24, 45-52.

Tan, U. (1985). Left-right differences in the Hoffmann reflex recovery curve associated with

handedness in normal subjects. International Journal of Psychophysiology , 3, 75-78.

Tan, U. (1990). Relation of testosterone and hand preference in right-handed young adults to sex and

familial sinistrality. International Journal of Neuroscience, 53, 157-165.

Tan, U. (1991). Serum testosterone levels in male and female subjects with standard and anomalous

dominance. International Journal of Neuroscience, 58, 211-214.

Tan, U. (1994). The grasp reflex from the right and left hand of human neonates indicates that the

development of both cerebral hemispheres in males, but only the right hemisphere in females, is

favoured by testosterone. International Journal of Psychophysiology , 16, 39-47.

Tan, U., Ors, R., Kurkcuoglu, M., Kutlu, N., & Cankaya, A. (1992). Lateralization of the grasp reflex

in male and female newborns. International Journal of Neuroscience , 62, 155-163.

Tan, U., & Tan, M. (1999). Incidences of asymmetries for the palmar grasp reflex in neonates and

hand preference in adults. NeuroReport, 10, 3253-3256.

Tan, U., & Zor, N. (1994). Relation of free-testosterone level to grasp-reflex strength in human

neonates with right-ear and left-ear facing out in-utero position. International Journal of

Neuroscience, 75, 9-18.

Wisniewski, A.B. (1998). Sexually-dimorphic patterns of cortical asymmetries, and the role for sex

steroid hormones in determining cortical patterns of lateralization. Psychoneuroendocrinology,

23, 519-547.

Metadata

Repository Staff Only: item control page

Cogprints is powered by EPrints 3 which is developed by the School of Electronics and Computer Science at the University of Southampton. More information and software credits.