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SUMMARY:Sex differences in the placenta and autism - Dr Alex Tsompanidis\,
  University of Cambridge  
DTSTART:20250319T113000Z
DTEND:20250319T123000Z
UID:TALK229510@talks.cam.ac.uk
CONTACT:Simon Braschi
DESCRIPTION:Autism and related neurodevelopmental conditions have high her
 itability and are often attributed to Genetics. Yet males are more likely 
 to be diagnosed\, even when the general spectrum of traits or alternative 
 presentations are considered in females. Sex differences in the prenatal e
 nvironment may then be interacting with genetic variance to ultimately aff
 ect neurodevelopment. Recent findings indicate that the placenta may be th
 e key mediator of this interaction and an understudied source of neurodive
 rsity in humans. This is supported by the following lines of evidence. Fir
 st\, steroid hormones such as estradiol are elevated in the fetal and mate
 rnal circulation of autistic males and correlate with the development of a
 utistic traits. Second\, subtle sex differences in placental function (e.g
 . in the levels of the placental growth factor) mediate sex differences in
  the future autistic traits of the offspring. Third\, sex differences in p
 lacental gene expression are enriched for genes implicated in autism. Four
 th\, recent assessments of large population registries\, such as the MBR i
 n Sweden\, show that males are more likely to have placental complications
  and complicated labour\, compared to females\, who\, in turn\, are more a
 ble to adjust their growth patterns prenatally. Finally\, evolutionary ada
 ptations in the primate lineage may show 'changes of degree' in humans\, s
 uch as increased steroidogenesis\, which may be linked to cortical expansi
 on and for understanding the association between the placenta and conditio
 ns such as autism.
LOCATION:https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87076030035?pwd=XUpJuh8jiR0mae1AhkV79qb
 g8MtlSM.1
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