Male vs. Female Brain Differences & How They Arise From Genes & Hormones | Dr. Nirao Shah

Huberman Lab

Scicomm Media

Science, Health & Fitness, Life Sciences

4.8 • 26.2K Ratings

🗓️ 28 July 2025

⏱️ 147 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

My guest is Dr. Nirao Shah, MD, PhD, a professor of psychiatry, behavioral sciences and neurobiology at Stanford University School of Medicine. We discuss how the brains of males and females differ and how those differences arise from different genes and hormones during fetal development, in childhood and adulthood. We discuss what drives male- versus female-specific behaviors and how hormonal fluctuations across the lifespan, including puberty, the menstrual cycle, menopause and aging – affect behavior, cognition and health. Additionally, we discuss how biology relates to gender identity and the impact of hormone therapies on brain circuits that regulate mating, parenting and social bonding. Read the episode show notes at hubermanlab.com. Thank you to our sponsors AG1: https://drinkag1.com/huberman Maui Nui: https://mauinuivenison.com/huberman Eight Sleep: https://eightsleep.com/huberman LMNT: https://drinklmnt.com/huberman Function: https://functionhealth.com/huberman Timestamps 00:00:00 Nirao Shah 00:02:11 Mice, Humans & Brain, Biological Conservation 00:05:25 Hormones, Nature vs Nurture 00:07:13 Biological Sex Differences, Chromosomes & SRY Gene, Hormones 00:16:01 Sponsors: Maui Nui & Eight Sleep 00:19:09 Androgen Mutations, Feminization & Masculinization 00:22:04 SRY Gene; Animals & Sexual Trans-Differentiation 00:27:49 Hormones & Biological Brain Differentiation 00:31:22 Congenital Adrenal Hyperplasia, Androstenedione; Stress & Pregnancy 00:35:56 Genes, Brain Differentiation & Sexual Identity; Congenital Adrenal Hyperplasia 00:43:37 Testosterone, Estrogen & Brain Circuits 00:47:27 Sponsors: AG1 & LMNT 00:50:36 Intersex Individuals, Castration 00:52:23 Female Sexual Behavior, Brain, Testosterone & Pheromones 00:57:58 Identify as Heterosexual or Homosexual, Difference in Hormone Levels? 01:00:42 Gender, Sexual Orientation & Hormones; Hormone Replacement Therapy 01:10:21 Aromatization; Steroid Hormones & Gene Expression 01:15:00 Kids & Changing Gender Identity 01:19:05 Sexual Behavior, Refractory Period & Male Brain, Tacr1 Cells 01:21:31 Sponsor: Function 01:23:19 Hypothalamus, Dopamine, Prolactin, Cabergoline, Libido, Dopamine 01:27:05 Brain Circuits, Aggression & Sexual Behavior 01:32:40 Refractory Period; Age, Testosterone & Libido 01:36:07 Tacr1 Cells in Females, Periaqueductal Gray & Innate Behaviors 01:40:00 Parenting Behaviors & Brain Circuits; Pet Dogs 01:43:12 Oxytocin, Pair Bonding, Vasopressin; Biological Redundancy 01:47:22 Libido, Melanocortin, Tacr1 Neurons; GLP-1 Agonists, Clinical Trials; Kisspeptin 01:56:43 Female Brain Changes, Menstrual Cycle, Pregnancy, Menopause; Estrogen; Men & Hormone Fluctuation? 02:04:10 Life Experience Male vs Female, Sex Recognition, Behaviors & Context 02:16:05 Pain Management; Endocrine Disrupters, Gender Identity 02:21:03 Future Projects 02:24:29 Zero-Cost Support, YouTube, Spotify & Apple Follow & Reviews, Sponsors, YouTube Feedback, Protocols Book, Social Media, Neural Network Newsletter Disclaimer & Disclosures Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Welcome to the Huberman Lab podcast, where we discuss science and science-based tools for everyday life.
0:08.9	I'm Andrew Huberman, and I'm a professor of neurobiology and ophthalmology at Stanford School of Medicine.
0:15.6	My guest today is Dr. Nirao Shah.
0:18.1	Dr. Nirao Shah is a professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences and neurobiology
0:22.6	at Stanford University School of Medicine. Dr. Shaw is both an MD and a PhD, and his laboratory
0:28.7	focuses on understanding the neural and hormonal mechanisms underlying sex differences in the brain.
0:34.3	During today's episode, we discuss what is known about male and female differences in brain structure and function and how those differences arise across the brain. During today's episode, we discuss what is known about male and female differences
0:38.0	in brain structure and function and how those differences arise across development, both in
0:43.0	utero and postnatally, that is, during puberty and into adulthood. A lot of our discussion
0:48.6	centers around testosterone and estrogen and how both of those hormones play a profound impact
0:53.6	on the development of both
0:54.9	the male and female brain but leads to different outcomes in male versus female brains.
1:00.4	We also discuss the neural circuits that control sex behavior and aggressive behavior in both
1:04.5	males and females and how those are activated by different hormones.
1:08.8	As you all know, there is immense interest
1:10.9	and a lot of controversy around sex differences
1:13.1	and how that relates to gender.
1:14.8	Today's discussion centers around the biology
1:17.0	of sex differences in the brain and body,
1:19.2	and it will provide a very useful template for everybody
1:21.9	in thinking about male versus female differences
1:24.6	in behavior, in emotions, and how that intersects with gender and culture.
	...

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