Male hormones are known as androgens. A very important one is called testosterone.
Males have a pair of sex chromosomes known as XY. The sex of a male is determined at fertilization when a sperm containing a Y chromosome and an egg containing an X chromosome unite. The gonadal sex—what makes someone visually appear to be male—is determined later on, due to the expression of a gene known as SRY.
This gene is located on the Y chromosome and causes undifferentiated gonads to develop along a male plan to form testes. That is because the male hormone testosterone controls the development of male reproductive organs both internally and externally.
The hormone testosterone causes a male at puberty to develop the phenotype associated with males—deeper voice, musculature, body hair, further development of the sex organs—as well as having an effect on the sex drive.
No comments:
Post a Comment