Sex, Sex Steroids, and Neuroprotection
Patricia D. Hurn, Ph.D. – Program Director

The study of sex and sex steroids has traditionally been limited to endocrinology and reproductive medicine.  This Program, however, explores the effects of sex steroids on generalized cell death/survival pathways and will reveal mechanisms behind a most fundamental “genetic” aspect of disease:  biological sex.      

It is now well recognized that estrogens and androgens strongly moderate injury to regions of the central nervous system that are completely unrelated to reproductive function or sexual differentiation.  These steroids protect and, in restricted conditions, can exacerbate neuronal response to injury from ischemic, inflammatory, and immunological challenges.

The major aims of this Program are: 1) to dissect important mechanisms by which the principal mammalian estrogen, 17β estradiol, rescues neurons from experimental stroke, cerebral ischemia, and multiple sclerosis; and 2) to open new areas of discovery by understanding the male phenotype of ischemic sensitivity and the role of testosterone in this phenotype.  

This research is funded by the National Institutes of Health.