ArticleProceedings. Biological sciences2010
A polymorphism in the oestrogen receptor gene explains covariance between digit ratio and mating behaviour.
Article in Proceedings. Biological sciences, 2010. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 17 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
17 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 42 citations in OpenAlex.
- In support of 2D:4D: More data exploring its conflicting results on handedness, sexual orientation and sex differences.PloS one · 2023Pooled it
- Genetic association suggests that SMOC1 mediates between prenatal sex hormones and digit ratio.Human genetics · 2013Trial
- Exploring the Genetic Background of the Differences in Nest-Building Behavior in European Rabbit.Animals : an open access journal from MDPI · 2020Article
- Digit ratio predicts the number of lifetime recruits in female collared flycatchers.Biology letters · 2019Article
- Differential Placing of Flexion Creases Contributes to Sex Differences in the Second-to-Fourth Digit Ratio (2D:4D).Frontiers in endocrinology · 2019Article
- Phenotypic integration mediated by hormones: associations among digit ratios, body size and testosterone during tadpole development.BMC evolutionary biology · 2017Article
- Sexual Dimorphism in Digit Ratios Derived from Dorsal Digit Length among Adults and Children.Frontiers in endocrinology · 2017Article
- Article
- Side-specific effect of yolk testosterone elevation on second-to-fourth digit ratio in a wild passerine.Die Naturwissenschaften · 2016Article
- Fitness Benefits of Mate Choice for Compatibility in a Socially Monogamous Species.PLoS biology · 2015Article
- No Evidence that 2D:4D is Related to the Number of CAG Repeats in the Androgen Receptor Gene.Frontiers in endocrinology · 2013Article
- Digit ratio predicts sense of direction in women.PloS one · 2012Article
- Female extrapair mating behavior can evolve via indirect selection on males.Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America · 2011Article
- Digit ratios have poor indicator value in a wild bird population.Behavioral ecology and sociobiology · 2011Article
- Low digit ratio 2D:4D in alcohol dependent patients.PloS one · 2011Article
- Digit ratio, color polymorphism and egg testosterone in the Australian painted dragon.PloS one · 2011Article
- Digit ratios by computer-assisted analysis confirm lack of anatomical evidence of prenatal androgen exposure in clinical phenotypes of polycystic ovary syndrome.Reproductive biology and endocrinology : RB&E · 2010Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
3 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
In vertebrates, including humans, the relative length of the second to the fourth digit correlates with sex hormone-dependent behavioural, psychological and physiological traits. However, despite a decade of research, the underlying mechanism linking digit ratio to these sex hormone-dependent traits remains unclear. Previous work suggests that during embryo development, circulating levels of plasma androgens or oestrogens may act through their receptors to affect transcription levels of posterior HOX genes in the developing digits, thereby possibly influencing their relative length. The correlation between digit ratio and sex hormone-dependent traits might thus stem from variation in expression or sensitivity of the sex hormone receptors, or from variation in sex hormone levels in the embryo. Here, we show that in a population of 1156 zebra finches Taeniopygia guttata, a polymorphism in the oestrogen receptor α gene (ESR1) explains 11.3 per cent of the variation in digit ratio, and is also associated with male and female-mating behaviour. By contrast, we found no associations between digit ratio or mating behaviours and polymorphisms in the androgen receptor gene. Thus, our results (i) provide an explanation for the observed significant genetic covariance between digit ratio and male and female mating behaviour and (ii) strongly confirm the indicator function of digit ratio through the oestrogen pathway. Finally, we note that the commonly invoked effect of foetal testosterone on human digit ratio seems to be substantially weaker than the effect described here.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.