Hormone-Dependent Medial Preoptic, Lumbar Spinal Cord, and Autonomic Coordination Supporting Male Sexual Behaviors

The document discussed the role of androgenic and estrogenic hormones in regulating male sexual behaviors through their actions on neurons in the medial preoptic area (mPOA) and lumbar spinal cord. It highlighted that lesions in the mPOA disrupt male sex behavior across vertebrate species and that testosterone (T) and its metabolite dihydrotestosterone (DHT) influence autonomic mechanisms involved in penile erection and ejaculation. The study also noted that stress can disrupt male sexual behavior, potentially interacting with sex hormone signaling. Outstanding questions included the differing roles of T and DHT in neural versus non-neural tissues and their specific contributions to activating neural circuits involved in male sex behavior.