NIH study shows highly reproducible sex differences in aspects of human brain anatomy

Gene expression data suggest potential role of sex chromosomes

A scientific analysis of more than 2,000 brain scans found evidence for highly reproducible sex differences in the volume of certain regions in the human brain. This pattern of sex-based differences in brain volume corresponds with patterns of sex-chromosome gene expression observed in postmortem samples from the brain’s cortex, suggesting that sex chromosomes may play a role in the development or maintenance of sex differences in brain anatomy. The study, led by researchers at the National Institute of Mental Health, part of the National Institutes of Health, is published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.