Nancy G. Forger

ORCID: 0000-0003-4574-1307
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About
Contact & Profiles
Research Areas
  • Neuroendocrine regulation and behavior
  • Hypothalamic control of reproductive hormones
  • Epigenetics and DNA Methylation
  • Genetic and Clinical Aspects of Sex Determination and Chromosomal Abnormalities
  • Neuroscience and Neuropharmacology Research
  • Neurogenesis and neuroplasticity mechanisms
  • Sexual Differentiation and Disorders
  • Evolution and Paleontology Studies
  • Neuroinflammation and Neurodegeneration Mechanisms
  • Birth, Development, and Health
  • Nerve injury and regeneration
  • Hormonal and reproductive studies
  • Ion channel regulation and function
  • Neurobiology and Insect Physiology Research
  • Stress Responses and Cortisol
  • Animal Ecology and Behavior Studies
  • Bat Biology and Ecology Studies
  • Physiological and biochemical adaptations
  • Circadian rhythm and melatonin
  • Muscle Physiology and Disorders
  • Evolutionary Psychology and Human Behavior
  • Primate Behavior and Ecology
  • Neuroscience of respiration and sleep
  • Estrogen and related hormone effects
  • Prenatal Substance Exposure Effects

University of Massachusetts Amherst
2004-2023

Georgia State University
2014-2023

Hudson Institute
2019

Google (United States)
2016

Quinnipiac University
2013

University of Connecticut
2006

Oregon National Primate Research Center
2004

Society for Neuroscience
2003

Inserm
2003

University of Massachusetts Boston
2002

Several of the best-studied sex differences in mammalian brain are ascribed to hormonal control cell death. This conclusion is based primarily on correlations between pyknotic counts development and mature neurons adulthood; molecular mechanisms hormone-regulated, sexually dimorphic death unknown. We asked whether Bax, a member Bcl-2 family proteins that required for many developing neurons, might be essential neuron number. compared Bax knockout mice their WT siblings, focusing two regions...

10.1073/pnas.0404644101 article EN Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 2004-09-01

Abstract The principal nucleus of the bed stria terminalis (BNSTp) is larger in volume and contains more cells male than female mice. These sex differences depend on testosterone arise from a higher rate cell death during early postnatal life females. There delay several days between surge at birth sexually dimorphic BNSTp, suggesting that epigenetic mechanisms may be involved. We tested hypothesis chromatin remodeling plays role sexual differentiation BNSTp by manipulating balance histone...

10.1210/en.2009-0458 article EN Endocrinology 2009-06-04

Feral white-footed mice are seasonal breeders that undergo predictable cycles of reproductive function. Photoperiod-induced fluctuations in gonadal function were associated with morphological changes perineal muscles and their motoneurons. Exposure to short daylengths resulted testicular regression, decreased muscle mass, shrinkage somata nuclei motoneurons the spinal nucleus bulbocavernosus (SNB). These effects reversed by reinstatement long daylengths. Similar reductions mass SNB soma size...

10.1002/neu.480180204 article EN Journal of Neurobiology 1987-03-01

The biological basis for sex differences in brain function and disease susceptibility is poorly understood. Examining the role of gonadal hormones sexual differentiation may provide important information about neural health development. Permanent masculinization structure, function, induced by testosterone prenatally males, but possible mediation these effects long-term changes epigenome understood.We investigated organizational on DNA methylome transcriptome two sexually dimorphic forebrain...

10.1186/2042-6410-5-8 article EN cc-by Biology of Sex Differences 2014-06-13

Onuf's nucleus, located in the sacral spinal cord of dogs, cats, and primates, innervates perineal muscles involved copulatory behavior. A sexual dimorphism nucleus was found humans dogs: males have significantly more motoneurons this than do females. Prenatal androgen treatment female dogs eliminated dimorphism. In homologous rats, a similar effect has been shown to involve sparing from cell death. These results establish morphological sex difference human central nervous system region...

10.1073/pnas.83.19.7527 article EN Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 1986-10-01

The Kiss1 gene and its product kisspeptin are important regulators of reproduction. In rodents, is expressed in the hypothalamic arcuate (ARC) anteroventral periventricular (AVPV)/rostral (PeN) nuclei. AVPV/PeN, females have more tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) neurons than males. We explored ontogeny sex difference, role cell death establishing TH number. also determined whether cells AVPV/PeN coexpress TH. were first detected both sexes on postnatal d 10, but difference did not emerge until 12....

10.1210/en.2010-0783 article EN Endocrinology 2010-10-06

DNA methylation is dynamically modulated during postnatal brain development, and plays a key role in neuronal lineage commitment. This epigenetic mark has also recently been implicated the development of neural sex differences, many which are found hypothalamus. The level depends on balance between placement methyl marks by methyltransferases (Dnmts) their removal, catalyzed ten-eleven translocation (Tet) methylcytosine dioxygenases. Here, we examined developmental changes differences...

10.1080/15592294.2019.1649528 article EN Epigenetics 2019-08-03

Social status impacts reproductive behavior in diverse vertebrate species, but little is known about how it affects brain morphology. We explore this the naked mole-rat, a species with most rigidly organized hierarchy among mammals. Naked mole-rats live large, subterranean colonies where breeding restricted to single female and small number of males. All other members colony, as subordinates, are reproductively suppressed. Subordinates can become breeders if removed from colony placed an...

10.1073/pnas.0610344104 article EN Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 2007-06-08

Naturally occurring cell death is essential to the development of mammalian nervous system. Although importance developmental has been appreciated for decades, there no comprehensive account across brain areas in mouse. Moreover, several regional sex differences have described ventral forebrain and hypothalamus, but it not known how widespread phenomenon is. We used immunohistochemical detection activated caspase-3 identify dying cells brains male female mice from postnatal day (P) 1 P11....

10.1002/cne.23298 article EN The Journal of Comparative Neurology 2013-01-08

Calbindin-D28 has been used as a marker for the sexually dimorphic nucleus of preoptic area (SDN-POA). Males have distinct cluster calbindin-immunoreactive (ir) cells in medial (CALB-SDN) that is reduced or absent females. However, it not clear whether sex difference due to absolute number calbindin-ir cell position (that is, spread), and cellular mechanisms underlying are known. We examined CALB-SDN surrounding regions C57Bl/6 mice lacking pro-death gene, Bax, test hypothesis observed...

10.1186/2042-6410-3-5 article EN cc-by Biology of Sex Differences 2012-02-15

Significance The rate of cesarean section (C-section) delivery worldwide far exceeds the World Health Organization’s recommended rate. C-section has been linked to behavioral effects in offspring. This suggests on brain, but human studies are confounded by medical complications, altered birth timing, and maternal factors associated with delivery. We addressed these limitations a carefully controlled study mice. Vaginally-born offspring exhibited an acute decrease cell death across brain that...

10.1073/pnas.1811962115 article EN Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 2018-10-15

The words "sex" and "gender" are often used interchangeably in common usage. In fact, the Merriam-Webster dictionary offers as definition of gender. authors this review neuroscientists, mean very different things to us: sex is based on biological factors such chromosomes gonads, whereas gender has a social component involves differential expectations or treatment by conspecifics, an individual's perceived sex. While we accustomed thinking about differences between males females epigenetic...

10.3389/fnins.2019.00173 article EN cc-by Frontiers in Neuroscience 2019-02-27

Pregnant spotted hyaenas were treated with anti-androgens to interfere the unusually masculine 'phallic' development that characterizes females of this species. The effects on genital morphology and plasma androgen concentrations infants studied during first 6 months life. Although there consistent 'feminizing' prenatal anti-androgen treatment in both sexes, such exposure did not produce males extreme hypospadia, as it does other species, nor a 'typical' mammalian clitoris external vagina....

10.1530/jrf.0.1130117 article EN Reproduction 1998-05-01
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