Sex differences

Recent articles

Research image of microglia in organoids.

Microglia nurture young interneurons

The immune cells secrete a growth factor that “sets the supply of GABAergic interneurons in the developing brain.”

By Lauren Schenkman
28 August 2025 | 4 min read
A brain made up of digital text.

ABCD Study omits gender-identity data from latest release

The removal counteracts the goals of the longitudinal study by “pretending that some aspects of adolescent brain development don’t exist,” says sex differences researcher Nicola Grissom.

By Calli McMurray
11 July 2025 | 4 min read
Illustration of overlapping, multi-colored human head silhouettes.

Perspectives from the field: Opinions in autism research

This collection of Spectrum articles from the past 12 months highlights expert perspectives on autism’s heritability and its link to biological sex, the value of transdiagnostic frameworks, and the field’s future, among other topics.

By Daisy Yuhas
10 July 2025 | 3 min read
Research image of excitatory neurons in the mouse hippocampus.

Spatial learning circuitry fluctuates in step with estrous cycle in mice

Cyclic shifts in estradiol levels coincide with changes in dendritic spine density and the activity of place cells in the CA1 region of the hippocampus, a new study shows.

By Sydney Wyatt
25 June 2025 | 6 min listen
Research image of the spinal meninges in mice.

Immune cells block pain in female mice only

Regulatory T cells in the spinal meninges release endogenous opioids in a sex-specific manner, new work shows.

By Angie Voyles Askham
22 May 2025 | 6 min listen
Photograph of a cardinal with male-typical red feathers on one side and more drab, female-typical feathers on the other.

What birds can teach us about the ‘biological truth’ of sex

Part of our job as educators is to give students a deeper understanding of the true diversity of sex and gender in the natural world.

By Nicole M. Baran
22 April 2025 | 8 min listen
Illustration of a face covered by several black rectangles.

Keep sex as a biological variable: Don’t let NIH upheaval turn back the clock on scientific rigor

Even in the absence of any formal instruction to do so, we should continue to hold our ourselves and our neuroscience colleagues accountable for SABV practices.

By Rebecca Shansky
25 March 2025 | 7 min listen
Child playing with blocks.

Structure of striatum varies by sex in autistic children

The changes could reflect different developmental trajectories between boys and girls with autism, a new study suggests.

By Holly Barker
27 February 2025 | 4 min read
A researcher holds a white mouse and a black mouse in their hands.

Exclusive: NIH appears to archive policy requiring female animals in studies

Such a shift would “put us back in the dark ages in terms of our science,” says neuroscientist Anne Murphy, who helped to formulate the original policy.

By Claudia López Lloreda
24 February 2025 | 4 min read
Abstract illustration of a feminine face in structural flux.

Revisiting sex and gender in the brain

To conduct scientifically accurate and socially responsible research, it is useful to think of “sex” as a complex, multifactorial and context-dependent variable.

By Marija Kundakovic
28 January 2025 | 8 min read

Explore more from The Transmitter

Research image of neuron organization in c elegans.

Worms help untangle brain structure/function mystery

The synaptic connectome of most animals bears little resemblance to functional brain maps, but it can still predict neuronal activity, according to two preprints that tackle the puzzle in C. elegans

By Holly Barker
29 August 2025 | 7 min read

Xaq Pitkow shares his principles for studying cognition in our imperfect brains and bodies

Pitkow discusses how evolution's messy constraints shape optimal brain algorithms, from Bayesian inference to ecological affordances.

By Paul Middlebrooks
27 August 2025 | 1 min read
Covers of upcoming neuroscience books.

The Transmitter’s reading list: Six upcoming neuroscience books, plus notable titles in 2025

Dig into an exploration of the fundamental aspects of intelligence, a new textbook about theoretical neuroscience and a memoir about memory research, among other new releases.

By Francisco J. Rivera Rosario
27 August 2025 | 10 min listen

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