Cognitive NeuroscienceResearch PaperEstrogen modulates inhibitory control in healthy human females: evidence from the stop-signal paradigm
Section snippets
Participants
Sixteen young healthy women, aged 19 to 28 years (mean age, 23.14±3.3) years, with a mean intelligence quotient (IQ) of 114.8±7.1, and sixteen young healthy men, aged 19 to 28 years (mean age, 23.15±4.3 years), with a mean IQ of 115.6±7.4, were compensated for their participation.
Women served in three experimental sessions held on three different days according to the phases of their menstrual cycle (menstruation, follicular, and luteal session). The menstruation session was held when the
Results
No significant group differences were obtained for age (t30=−0.113, P=0.91) and intelligence (t30=0.32, P=0.75).
Discussion
Our findings show that inhibitory control, as measured by a stop-signal task, varies across the menstrual cycle of healthy human females. In particular, women show a comparatively longer SSRT in their FP, which is associated with higher levels of estradiol, higher DA turnover rates, and higher D2 receptor densities (Fernandez-Ruiz et al., 1991, Pazos et al., 1985, Bazzett and Becker, 1994, Di Paolo, 1994) than in the other two phases of their menstrual cycle. Importantly, there was no evidence
Acknowledgments
The research of Lorenza S. Colzato and Wery P. M. van den Wildenberg is supported by the Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research (NWO).
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