Sexual dimorphism articles within Nature Communications

Featured

• Article
  12 December 2022 | Open Access

  Sex differences in allometry for phenotypic traits in mice indicate that females are not scaled males

  Research aimed at improving healthcare has largely focused on male animals and cells. Here, the authors use data from the International Mouse Phenotyping Consortium to show that body weight does not account for all phenotypic differences between male and female mice, supporting more female-focused research.

  • Laura A. B. Wilson
  • , Susanne R. K. Zajitschek
  •  & Shinichi Nakagawa

• Article
  03 June 2019 | Open Access

  Sex-specific association between gut microbiome and fat distribution

  The gut microbiome has been reported to be associated with obesity; here, the authors show that there are sex-specific differences in the relationship between gut microbes and abdominal obesity.

  • Yan Min
  • , Xiaoguang Ma
  •  & Shankuan Zhu

• Article
  04 December 2018 | Open Access

  Sex separation induces differences in the olfactory sensory receptor repertoires of male and female mice

  Olfactory experience can alter the relative abundance of neurons expressing specific chemoreceptors. Here, the authors demonstrate that the distinct odor experiences of sex-separated male and female mice induce sex-specific differences in the abundance of neurons that detect sexually dimorphic odors.

  • Carl van der Linden
  • , Susanne Jakob
  •  & Stephen W. Santoro

• Article
  25 September 2018 | Open Access

  Sex and species specific hearing mechanisms in mosquito flagellar ears

  Auditory processing is an important component of mosquito behaviour including mating. Here the authors demonstrate substantial sex- and also species-specific variation in mosquito auditory transduction, amplification and gain control.

  • Matthew P. Su
  • , Marta Andrés
  •  & Joerg T. Albert

• Article
  26 January 2018 | Open Access

  Female sexual behavior in mice is controlled by kisspeptin neurons

  Mate preference and copulatory behavior in female rodents are coordinated with the ovulation cycles of the animal. This study shows that hypothalamic kisspeptin neurons control both mate choice and copulation, and therefore, that sexual behavior and ovulation may be synchronized by the same neuropeptide.

  • Vincent Hellier
  • , Olivier Brock
  •  & Julie Bakker

• Article
  18 January 2018 | Open Access

  Medial preoptic area in mice is capable of mediating sexually dimorphic behaviors regardless of gender

  The medial preoptic area (mPOA) in a mammalian brain is sexually dimorphic, and yet its exact function in mediating gender-specific behavior remains unclear. Here, Xu and colleagues show that optogenetic manipulation of the mPOA in male mice induce female-stereotyped behaviors and vice versa.

  • Yi-Chao Wei
  • , Shao-Ran Wang
  •  & Xiao-Hong Xu

• Article
  14 November 2017 | Open Access

  The core-promoter factor TRF2 mediates a Fruitless action to masculinize neurobehavioral traits in Drosophila

  fruitless (fru) is an important sex-determinant gene that controls the expression of neuroanatomical sex differences in Drosophila. Here the authors report that a core-promoter factor, TRF2, suppresses a male-type neurite specification through direct interaction with FruBM isoform at the robo1 target gene promoter.

  • Zahid Sadek Chowdhury
  • , Kosei Sato
  •  & Daisuke Yamamoto

• Article
  28 July 2017 | Open Access

  Genetic and neuronal mechanisms governing the sex-specific interaction between sleep and sexual behaviors in Drosophila

  Genes and circuits involved in sleep and sexual arousal have been extensively studied in Drosophila. Here the authors identify the sex determination genes fruitless and doublesex, and a sex-specific P1-DN1 neuronal feedback that governs the interaction between these competing behaviors

  • Dandan Chen
  • , Divya Sitaraman
  •  & Yufeng Pan

• Article
  27 February 2017 | Open Access

  Asymmetric interactions between doublesex and tissue- and sex-specific target genes mediate sexual dimorphism in beetles

  Sexual dimorphism is likely the result of differential gene expression. Here, the authors examine the role of thedsxgene in beetles and find that this gene acts in a sex- and tissue-specific manner, either by regulating sex-specific targets or by acting in opposite directions in males and females.

  • C. C. Ledón-Rettig
  • , E. E. Zattara
  •  & A. P. Moczek

• Article
  22 February 2017 | Open Access

  Sex differences in microglial CX3CR1 signalling determine obesity susceptibility in mice

  Unlike males, female mice are resistant to hypothalamic inflammation and weight gain when fed a high-fat diet. Here, the authors reveal sex-specific regulation of hypothalamic microglial activation through CX3CR1 signalling, providing a potential mechanism for differential susceptibility to diet-induced obesity.

  • Mauricio D. Dorfman
  • , Jordan E. Krull
  •  & Joshua P. Thaler