ECE2016 Eposter Presentations Steroid metabolism + action (13 abstracts)
VU University Medical Center, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
Background: Several resting state networks have been described in literature. Today, it is still unclear whether these networks are stable or can be influenced by sex hormones. Transgender persons offer a unique opportunity to study these hormonal influences.
Objective: To examine the effects of cross-sex hormone treatment in transgender persons on two resting state networks involved in cognition and emotion, the default mode network and executive network.
Methods: Resting state functional magnetic resonance imaging and sex hormone levels were analyzed in 21 female-to-males, 13 male-to-females, 17 untreated control men and 12 untreated control women (all participants were aged ≥17). Measurements were done at baseline, when endogenous gonadal stimulation in the transgender participants was suppressed by a gonadotropin-releasing hormone analogue, and four months after the start of cross-sex hormone treatment (testosterone in female-to-males and estradiol in male-to-females). Independent component analysis was used to evaluate the effect of cross-sex hormones.
Results: Within the default mode network, female-to-males showed increased functional connectivity in the right postcentral gyrus four months after starting testosterone treatment. In the male-to-females and both control groups no differences in functional connectivity in any of the two networks were observed.
Conclusions: Functional connectivity within the default mode network appears to be affected by testosterone treatment in female-to-male transgender persons.