A Golgi-stained human neocortical pyramidal neuron. Morris et al. studied cells like this to determine the effect of sexual experience on the adult brain. Using Neurolucida, they saw shorter, less extensive dendrites in hamsters which mated during adolescence versus controls.
Scientists hypothesize that during puberty, experiences influence brain development in ways that shape brain structure and even behavior in adulthood. One type of experience that often arises in the minds of pubescent teens and adolescents is sex. But a study published in the journal Hormones and Behavior suggests engaging in sexual activity too soon could be detrimental to the adult brain, and may lead to depression.
In their study of Siberian hamsters, scientists at the Wexner Medical Center at Ohio State University say adolescent sexual experiences alter brain structure.
“We used Neurolucida to reconstruct the morphology of prefrontal cortical neurons in the brains of Siberian hamsters that were exposed to sexual experience during early adolescence, later in young adulthood, or left socially isolated,” said Dr. Zachary M. Weil, an author of the study. “Interestingly, hamsters that engaged in sexual experience during early adolescence but not during other developmental periods exhibited reduced branching and dendritic length in the prefrontal cortex.”
