Gender and sexual orientation differences in cognition across adulthood : age is kinder to women than to men regardless of sexual orientation

Despite some evidence of greater age-related deterioration of the brain in males than in females, gender differences in rates of cognitive aging have proved inconsistent. The present study employed web-based methodology to collect data from people aged 20-65 years (109,612 men; 88,509 women). As expected, men outperformed women on tests of mental rotation and line angle judgment, whereas women outperformed men on tests of category fluency and object location memory. Performance on all tests declined with age but significantly more so for men than for women. Heterosexuals of each gender generally outperformed bisexuals and homosexuals on tests where that gender was superior; however, there were no clear interactions between age and sexual orientation for either gender. At least for these particular tests from young adulthood to retirement, age is kinder to women than to men, but treats heterosexuals, bisexuals, and homosexuals just the same

Developmental malformation of the corpus callosum: a review of typical callosal development and examples of developmental disorders with callosal involvement

This review provides an overview of the involvement of the corpus callosum (CC) in a variety of developmental disorders that are currently defined exclusively by genetics, developmental insult, and/or behavior. I begin with a general review of CC development, connectivity, and function, followed by discussion of the research methods typically utilized to study the callosum. The bulk of the review concentrates on specific developmental disorders, beginning with agenesis of the corpus callosum (AgCC)—the only condition diagnosed exclusively by callosal anatomy. This is followed by a review of several genetic disorders that commonly result in social impairments and/or psychopathology similar to AgCC (neurofibromatosis-1, Turner syndrome, 22q11.2 deletion syndrome, Williams yndrome, and fragile X) and two forms of prenatal injury (premature birth, fetal alcohol syndrome) known to impact callosal development. Finally, I examine callosal involvement in several common developmental disorders defined exclusively by behavioral patterns (developmental language delay, dyslexia, attention-deficit hyperactive disorder, autism spectrum disorders, and Tourette syndrome)

Diurnal intraocular pressure fluctuation and its risk factors in angle-closure and open-angle glaucoma

PurposeTo evaluate intraocular pressure (IOP) fluctuation during office hours and its predictive factors in untreated primary angle-closure suspects (PACS); post-iridotomy primary angle closure (PAC) and primary angle-closure glaucoma (PACG) eyes with or without IOP-lowering medication(s) as appropriate and medically treated primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG) eyes.MethodsOne-hundred seventeen eyes (29 PACS, 30 PAC, 28 PACG, and 30 POAG) of 117 patients were included in this cross-sectional study. The subjects underwent hourly IOP measurements with Goldmann tonometer from 0800 to 1700 hours. Subjects with PAC and PACG had laser peripheral iridotomy at least 2 weeks prior to the inclusion. SD of office-hour IOP readings was the main outcome measure.ResultsIOP fluctuation differed between the groups (P=0.01; Kruskal–Wallis Test). Post hoc Mann–Whitney U-tests showed significantly less IOP fluctuation in PACS compared with PACG (PConclusionsDiurnal IOP fluctuation in asymptomatic PACSs was less than that in treated PACG subjects and was at least comparable to that in treated PAC and POAG subjects. The greater the amount of PAS, the thicker the lens, the larger the VCDR, the greater was the IOP fluctuation during office hours

Diferenças de gênero no brincar de crianças pré-escolares e escolares na brinquedoteca

Este estudo teve como objetivo principal caracterizar o brincar de meninos e meninas em duas brinquedotecas, uma na pré-escola e outra no ensino fundamental. Participaram do primeiro nove meninos e dez meninas; e do segundo, onze meninas e treze meninos. Em ambos os contextos, verificaram-se a predominância de brincadeiras entre crianças de mesmo sexo. Houve predomínio de brincadeiras solitárias na pré-escola, e de brincadeiras em grupo no ensino fundamental. Meninas, nos dois contextos, brincaram significativamente mais de faz-de-conta e com brinquedos para o desenvolvimento afetivo do que meninos. Estes, em comparação com meninas, na pré-escola, brincaram significativamente mais de brincadeira realística e com brinquedos que reproduzem o mundo técnico. No ensino fundamental, meninos brincaram significativamente mais de brincadeira turbulenta e sem brinquedo do que meninas. Os resultados são discutidos com base nas características das crianças e também em função dos contextos das brinquedotecas

Prenatal sex hormones (maternal and amniotic fluid) and gender-related play behavior in 13-month-old Infants.

Contains fulltext : 81906.pdf (publisher's version ) (Closed access)Testosterone, estradiol, and progesterone levels were measured in the second trimester of pregnancy in maternal serum and amniotic fluid, and related to direct observations of gender-related play behavior in 63 male and 63 female offspring at age 13 months. During a structured play session, sex differences in toy preference were found: boys played more with masculine toys than girls (d = .53) and girls played more with feminine toys than boys (d = .35). Normal within-sex variation in prenatal testosterone and estradiol levels was not significantly related to preference for masculine or feminine toys. For progesterone, an unexpected significant positive relationship was found in boys between the level in amniotic fluid and masculine toy preference. The mechanism explaining this relationship is presently not clear, and the finding may be a spurious one. The results of this study may indicate that a hormonal basis for the development of sex-typed toy preferences may manifest itself only after toddlerhood. It may also be that the effect size of this relationship is so small that it should be investigated with more sensitive measures or in larger populations