Download or read book Assessing Prenatal and Neonatal Gonadal Steroid Exposure for Studies of Human Development Methodological and Theoretical Challenges written by Rebecca Christine Knickmeyer and published by Frontiers Media SA. This book was released on 2015-07-28 with total page 82 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: There is extensive evidence from animal models that gonadal steroids, produced in fetal and neonatal life, act on the developing organism to produce sex differences far beyond the reproductive system. That early gonadal steroid exposure also plays an important role in human development is supported by studies of individuals with disorders of sex determination and differentiation. It is much less clear whether normal variation in gonadal steroid exposure predicts sexually dimorphic health outcomes or within-sex variation. This is largely due to challenges related to the assessment of gonadal steroid exposure in the developing fetus and neonate. Regarding the prenatal period, serial measurements of serum hormone levels in the fetus, for use in studies of later development, are not possible for ethical reasons. Researchers have measured hormones in maternal blood, umbilical cord blood, and amniotic fluid; used putative anthropometric indices such as the relative lengths of the 2nd and 4th digits (2D:4D); evaluated common variants in genes related to hormone production, transport, and metabolism; and examined development in opposite sex twins and the offspring of mothers with hyperandrogeny. Each of these approaches has particular strengths and notable weaknesses. Regarding the neonatal period, serial measurements in serum are often impractical for studies of typical development. Salivary hormone assays, frequently used in studies of older children and adults, have not been extensively investigated in neonates. The most appropriate timing for testing is also open to debate. Early work suggested that testosterone levels in males begin to rise after the first postnatal week, peak around the 3rd to 4th months of life, and then drop back to very low levels by 1 year. However a more recent study of 138 infants did not demonstrate this pattern. Testosterone was highest on the day of birth and gradually dropped over the first 6 months. Even less is known about patterns of early estrogen exposure, though highly sensitive bioassays indicated that sex differences are present in early childhood. In addition, the design and interpretation of studies may be impacted by widespread acceptance of conceptual frameworks that are not well-supported empirically. For example, many researchers presume that the free hormone hypothesis, which states that unbound hormone is more readily diffusible into tissues and thus a better measure of actual exposure, is true. However this hypothesis has been challenged on multiple grounds. A second example: it is generally accepted that masculinization of the human brain is primarily mediated by the androgen receptor (in contrast to rodents where the estrogen receptor plays a major role), in part because chromosomal males with complete androgen insensitivity generally espouse a female gender identity. However this is not always the case, and other sexually dimorphic outcomes have not been carefully assessed in CAIS. The aim of this research topic is to gather together experimental and review papers which address the diverse challenges in assessing prenatal and neonatal gonadal steroid exposure for studies of human development with the expectation that this will allow more critical appraisal of existing studies, identify critical research gaps, and improve the design of future studies.
Download or read book Assessing Prenatal and Neonatal Gonadal Steroid Exposure for Studies of Human Development Methodological and Theoretical Challenges written by and published by . This book was released on with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Prenatal Testosterone in Mind written by Simon Baron-Cohen and published by MIT Press. This book was released on 2006-01-20 with total page 145 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This pioneering study looks at the effects of prenatal testosterone on postnatal development and behavior. Hormonal effects on behavior have long been studied in animals; the unique contribution of this book is to suggest a connection between human fetal hormones and later behavior. It details for the first time testosterone's effect on social and language development, opening a new avenue of research for cognitive neuroscience. The authors look at samples of amniotic fluid taken during amniocentesis at 16 weeks' gestation, and relate the fetal level of testosterone (which is present in fetuses of both sexes, although in different quantities) to behavior at ages 1, 2, and 4 years. They argue that the amniotic fluid provides a window into the child's past—a chemical record of that child's time in the womb—that allows informed prediction about the child's future brain, mind, and behavior. This is not the retrospective speculation of psychoanalysis, they point out, but an opportunity to study development prospectively and trace developmental precursors and causes of later cognition. The study suggests that prenatal levels of testosterone affect a range of later behaviors in children, from the inclination to make eye contact with others to the size of the vocabulary. It also suggests that prenatal testosterone level may be related to the development of typically "masculine" and "feminine" behaviors. The study's ongoing research explores whether fetal testosterone has any link with the risk of developing autism. Connecting endocrinology and psychology, the authors propose that there is a biological component to behaviors often thought to be produced by the social environment.
Download or read book The Promise of Adolescence written by National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 2019-07-26 with total page 493 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Adolescenceâ€"beginning with the onset of puberty and ending in the mid-20sâ€"is a critical period of development during which key areas of the brain mature and develop. These changes in brain structure, function, and connectivity mark adolescence as a period of opportunity to discover new vistas, to form relationships with peers and adults, and to explore one's developing identity. It is also a period of resilience that can ameliorate childhood setbacks and set the stage for a thriving trajectory over the life course. Because adolescents comprise nearly one-fourth of the entire U.S. population, the nation needs policies and practices that will better leverage these developmental opportunities to harness the promise of adolescenceâ€"rather than focusing myopically on containing its risks. This report examines the neurobiological and socio-behavioral science of adolescent development and outlines how this knowledge can be applied, both to promote adolescent well-being, resilience, and development, and to rectify structural barriers and inequalities in opportunity, enabling all adolescents to flourish.
Download or read book Application of Systematic Review Methods in an Overall Strategy for Evaluating Low Dose Toxicity from Endocrine Active Chemicals written by National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 2017-08-14 with total page 423 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: To safeguard public health, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) must keep abreast of new scientific information and emerging technologies so that it can apply them to regulatory decision-making. For decades the agency has dealt with questions about what animal-testing data to use to make predictions about human health hazards, how to perform dose-response extrapolations, how to identify and protect susceptible subpopulations, and how to address uncertainties. As alternatives to traditional toxicity testing have emerged, the agency has been faced with additional questions about how to incorporate data from such tests into its chemical assessments and whether such tests can replace some traditional testing methods. Endocrine active chemicals (EACs) have raised concerns that traditional toxicity-testing protocols might be inadequate to identify all potential hazards to human health because they have the ability to modulate normal hormone function, and small alterations in hormone concentrations, particularly during sensitive life stages, can have lasting and significant effects. To address concerns about potential human health effects from EACs at low doses, this report develops a strategy to evaluate the evidence for such low-dose effects.
Download or read book Pesticides in the Diets of Infants and Children written by National Research Council and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 1993-02-01 with total page 402 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Many of the pesticides applied to food crops in this country are present in foods and may pose risks to human health. Current regulations are intended to protect the health of the general population by controlling pesticide use. This book explores whether the present regulatory approaches adequately protect infants and children, who may differ from adults in susceptibility and in dietary exposures to pesticide residues. The committee focuses on four major areas: Susceptibility: Are children more susceptible or less susceptible than adults to the effects of dietary exposure to pesticides? Exposure: What foods do infants and children eat, and which pesticides and how much of them are present in those foods? Is the current information on consumption and residues adequate to estimate exposure? Toxicity: Are toxicity tests in laboratory animals adequate to predict toxicity in human infants and children? Do the extent and type of toxicity of some chemicals vary by species and by age? Assessing risk: How is dietary exposure to pesticide residues associated with response? How can laboratory data on lifetime exposures of animals be used to derive meaningful estimates of risk to children? Does risk accumulate more rapidly during the early years of life? This book will be of interest to policymakers, administrators of research in the public and private sectors, toxicologists, pediatricians and other health professionals, and the pesticide industry.
Download or read book Research Awards Index written by and published by . This book was released on 1985 with total page 1436 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Sexual Differentiation written by Arnold A. Gerall and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2013-11-11 with total page 374 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Based on a large variety of experiments on both humans and animals, this volume presents novel conceptualizations of the organizing consequences of hormones throughout the lifespans of mammals.
Download or read book Cumulated Index Medicus written by and published by . This book was released on 1993 with total page 1488 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Research Grants Index written by National Institutes of Health (U.S.). Division of Research Grants and published by . This book was released on 1973 with total page 1490 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Toxicological Profile for Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons written by and published by . This book was released on 1995 with total page 500 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Fetal Therapy written by Mark D. Kilby and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2013 with total page 471 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Covers the latest insights any fetal specialist needs and provides essential knowledge for professionals caring for women with high-risk pregnancies.
Download or read book Brain Gender written by Melissa Hines and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2005-04-14 with total page 324 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Do biological factors, such as gonadal hormones, determine our sexual destiny after our genes are in place? Do they make men aggressive, or women nurturing? Do they cause boys and girls to play differently or to have different interests? Do they explain differences in sexual orientation within each sex group? Do they contribute to the preponderance of men in science or women at home? Scientists working from a psychosocial perspective would answer these questions differently than those working from a behavioral neuroscience or neuroendocrinological perspective. This book brings both of these perspectives to bear on the questions, tracing the factors that influence the brain, beginning with testosterone and other hormones during prenatal life, and continuing through changing life situations and experiences that can sculpt the brain and its activity, even in adulthood. This influence has important implications for understanding the social roles of men and women in society, the different educational and emotional issues that confront males and females, the legal rights of those whose sexual orientation or gender identity do not correspond to norms, and even standards of clinical care for people born with physical intersex conditions that make it difficult to classify a person as male or female at birth. This original and accessible book will be of interest to psychologists, neuroscientists, pediatricians, and educators, as well as the general public. It is also suitable for use in graduate and undergraduate courses on the psychology of gender or on hormones and behavior.
Download or read book Exploring the Biological Contributions to Human Health written by Institute of Medicine and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 2001-07-02 with total page 287 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: It's obvious why only men develop prostate cancer and why only women get ovarian cancer. But it is not obvious why women are more likely to recover language ability after a stroke than men or why women are more apt to develop autoimmune diseases such as lupus. Sex differences in health throughout the lifespan have been documented. Exploring the Biological Contributions to Human Health begins to snap the pieces of the puzzle into place so that this knowledge can be used to improve health for both sexes. From behavior and cognition to metabolism and response to chemicals and infectious organisms, this book explores the health impact of sex (being male or female, according to reproductive organs and chromosomes) and gender (one's sense of self as male or female in society). Exploring the Biological Contributions to Human Health discusses basic biochemical differences in the cells of males and females and health variability between the sexes from conception throughout life. The book identifies key research needs and opportunities and addresses barriers to research. Exploring the Biological Contributions to Human Health will be important to health policy makers, basic, applied, and clinical researchers, educators, providers, and journalists-while being very accessible to interested lay readers.
Download or read book The Cambridge Encyclopedia of Child Development written by Brian Hopkins and published by . This book was released on 2017-10-19 with total page 993 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Updated and expanded to 124 entries, The Cambridge Encyclopedia of Child Development remains the authoritative reference in the field.
Download or read book Maternal Child Nursing Care E Book written by Shannon E. Perry and published by Elsevier Health Sciences. This book was released on 2022-03-05 with total page 1643 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Master the essentials of maternity and pediatric nursing with this comprehensive, all-in-one text! Maternal Child Nursing Care, 7th Edition covers the issues and concerns of women during their childbearing years and children during their developing years. It uses a family-centered, problem-solving approach to patient care, with guidelines supported by evidence-based practice. New to this edition is an emphasis on clinical judgment skills and a new chapter on children with integumentary dysfunction. Written by a team of experts led by Shannon E. Perry and Marilyn J. Hockenberry, this book provides the accurate information you need to succeed in the classroom, the clinical setting, and on the Next Generation NCLEX-RN® examination. - Focus on the family throughout the text emphasizes the influence of the entire family in health and illness. - Expert authors of the market-leading maternity and pediatric nursing textbooks combine to ensure delivery of the most accurate, up-to-date content. - Information on victims of sexual abuse as parents and human trafficking helps prepare students to handle these delicate issues. - Nursing Alerts highlight critical information that could lead to deteriorating or emergency situations. - Guidelines boxes outline nursing procedures in an easy-to-follow format. - Evidence-Based Practice boxes include findings from recent clinical studies. - Emergency Treatment boxes describe the signs and symptoms of emergency situations and provide step-by-step interventions. - Atraumatic Care boxes teach students how to manage pain and provide competent care to pediatric patients with the least amount of physical or psychological stress. - Community Focus boxes emphasize community issues, provide resources and guidance, and illustrate nursing care in a variety of settings. - Patient Teaching boxes highlight important information nurses need to communicate to patients and families. - Cultural Considerations boxes describe beliefs and practices relating to pregnancy, labor and birth, parenting, and women's health. - Family-Centered Care boxes draw attention to the needs or concerns of families that students should consider to provide family-centered care.
Download or read book Fetal and Neonatal Physiology written by Richard Alan Polin and published by . This book was released on 1998 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
