Psychoneuroendocrinology
-
Psychoneuroendocrinology · Jun 2019
Does sex hormone treatment reverse the sex-dependent stress regulation? A longitudinal study on hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis activity in transgender individuals.
Studies in mammals indicate a role for sex hormones in the regulation of hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA)-axis reactivity. However, in humans, experimental paradigms investigating long-term exposure to sex hormones are sparse, limiting the understanding of the influence of sex hormones on HPA-axis activity. Gender-affirming hormone therapy (GAHT) in transgender persons enables to study the physiological role of sex steroids partially uncoupled from the distinct genetic background of men and women. ⋯ This is the first study demonstrating long-term effects of a complete reversal of the sex-hormonal milieu on HPA-axis activity in humans. Our findings hereby expand the current knowledge of the physiology of HPA-axis regulation. and may be particularly relevant for transgender and cisgender people undergoing hormonal suppression or substitution therapies.