ArticleNeuropsychiatric disease and treatment2018
Gender differences in the relationships among neurosteroid serum levels, cognitive function, and quality of life.
Article in Neuropsychiatric disease and treatment, 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 15 papers.
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Who cites it
15 citing papers in PubMed, 22 citations in OpenAlex.
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- 11-oxygenated androgens in healthy young adults: Does use of hormonal contraceptives matter? The Fit Futures Study.Journal of endocrinological investigation · 2026Article
- Association of DHEAS levels with COVID19 severity, gender, age, comorbidities, and management strategies.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- Comparative analysis of neurosteroid levels in normal and adenomatous human pituitary tissue.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- The influence of sex-specific factors on biological transformations and health outcomes in aging processes.Biogerontology · 2024Review
- Sex and gender correlates of sexually polymorphic cognition.Biology of sex differences · 2024Article
- Relationship between COVID-related stressors and internalizing symptoms: Gendered neuroendocrine risk profiles.Psychoneuroendocrinology · 2024Article
- Among men, androgens are associated with a decrease in Alzheimer's disease risk.Alzheimer's & dementia : the journal of the Alzheimer's Association · 2023Article
- Gender and Neurosteroids: Implications for Brain Function, Neuroplasticity and Rehabilitation.International journal of molecular sciences · 2023Review
- Pregnenolone Attenuates the Ischemia-Induced Neurological Deficit in the Transient Middle Cerebral Artery Occlusion Model of Rats.ACS omega · 2022Article
- ATP and adenosine-Two players in the control of seizures and epilepsy development.Progress in neurobiology · 2021Review
- A Potential Mechanism Underlying the Therapeutic Effects of Progesterone and Allopregnanolone on Ketamine-Induced Cognitive Deficits.Frontiers in pharmacology · 2021Article
- Effects of androgens and estrogens on sirtuin 1 gene expression in human aortic endothelial cells.Saudi medical journal · 2020Article
- An Updated Review: Androgens and Cognitive Impairment in Older Men.Frontiers in endocrinology · 2020Review
- Neuroactive Steroids and Cognitive Functions in First-Episode Psychosis Patients and Their Healthy Siblings.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2019Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
5 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundDehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA), its sulfate ester (DHEA-S), and pregnenolone are neurosteroids that can be synthesized in the brain. Previous studies have hypothesized that these neurosteroids have antiaging, mood-enhancing, and cognitive-preserving effects; however, these effects may be gender-specific. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to investigate the gender differences in the relationships among neurosteroids (DHEA, DHEA-S, and pregnenolone), cognitive function, and quality of life in healthy individuals.
methodIn this cross-sectional study, we enrolled 47 men (mean age: 32.8 years) and 75 women (mean age: 35.4 years) who had no major physical or psychiatric illnesses and measured their serum DHEA, DHEA-S, and pregnenolone. Furthermore, we evaluated the subjects' cognitive function and quality of life using the Brief Assessment of Cognition in Schizophrenia and the World Health Organization Quality of Life Scale, respectively.
resultsThe serum levels of DHEA and DHEA-S demonstrated significant gender differences, even after controlling for age effect. In the male subjects, the DHEA serum levels were positively correlated with three domains of the World Health Organization Quality of Life Scale, including physical health, social relations, and environmental dimensions. Meanwhile, the DHEA-S levels positively correlated with the performance of working memory, and pregnenolone levels had a positive correlation with working memory, verbal fluency, and Brief Assessment of Cognition in Schizophrenia composite score. However, in the female subjects, we observed a correlation only between the serum levels of DHEA-S and working memory.
conclusionThe findings of our study indicate that neurosteroids play a vital role in cognitive function and quality of life among men but less so among women. Nevertheless, the underlying mechanisms of the gender-specific effect of neurosteroids require further investigation.
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