Puberty and Coition Flashcards
What are the stages of life?
Embryonic and fetal existence Infancy and childhood Puberty and adolescence Early and middle adulthood Late adulthood and old age
Define puberty
The transition phase that takes a person from being a sexually immature child to a sexually mature, reproductively fertile adult
Define pubescence
The state of the child between onset of pubertal changes and the completion of sexual maturation
What is the definitive sign of puberty beginning? Do these represent fertility?
Menarche females
First ejaculation males (often nocternal)
No - first menstrual period often anovulatory, first ejaculate small quantities of seminal plasma and no spermatozoa
What is gonadarche?
Steroid hormones beginning to be secreted from the gonads
What is adrenarche?
Steroid hormones beginning to be secreted from the adrenal gland
Why are boys taller than girls?
Boys begin the adolescent growth spurt 2 years later, and so are taller at the point of take-off
Height gain during the spurt is similar for both boys and girls
10cm difference in average height thus due to difference at the point of take-off
What are the phases of the adolescent growth spurt?
- Time of minimum growth
- Time of peak height velocity
- Time of decreased growth velocity
What is the growth spurt dependent on?
Sex hormones and growth hormone from ant pit
Compare the body composition changes at puberty of men and women
Adult men 1.5x lean body mass of women
Women 2x as much body fat
Skeletal mass adult men 1.5x women
Men (due to more androgens) greater number muscle cells
How long after menarche is first ovulation?
Months to two years
Describe the changes of females at puberty
9 Growth spurt
10 Secondary sexual characteristics
- Growth and widening of pelvis
- Appearance of pubic hair
- Breasts grow and mature
Metabolic rate, BP and HR increase
11 Ovaries/oviducts/uterus/vagina grow and mature
12 Filling in of breasts, appearance of axillary hair, menarche
13 First ovulation, sketal growth declines,
- Sweat and sebaceous glands become more active
14
- Slight lowering of voice
15
- Adult stature reached
Describe the changes of males at puberty
9 Initial stages of spermatogenesis. Leydig cells appear and begin androgen secretion.
10 Growth and maturation of testes/
11 vas deferens/seminal vesicles/prostate gland
Growth scrotum and penis
Spontaneous erections more frequent (response to stressful or emotionally-charged stimuli)
Secondary sexual characteristics
- Pubic and axillary hair,
Growth spurt begins
12
Nocturnal emissions during sleep or after waking
- More pubic hair
13
- Hair in axilla
- Sweat glands in axilla
- Nipple pigmented and areola darkens and widens
- Vocal cords in larynx lengthen, voice deepens/breaks such that the pitch of the adult male voice is an octave lower than that of females
14 First fertile ejaculation, slight breast enlargement in some individuals
15 Adult hair pattern,
- Hair on face/chest/extremities
- Sebaceous glands active in skin of scrotum/face/back/chest with some acne
16 Broadening of shoulders, muscle growth
17 Adult stature reached
What are the Tanner stages for females?
- Prepubertal pubic hair and breasts
- Sparse lightly pigmented pubic hair on medial border labia. Breast and nipple elevated as small mound, areolar diameter increased
- Darker, beginning to curl, more pubic hair. Breast and areola enlarged, no contour separation
- Coarse, curly, abundant (less than adult) pubic hair. Areola and papilla form secondary mound.
- Adult feminine triangle spread to medial thigh pubic hair. Mature nipple projects, areola part of general breast contour.
Describe the Tanner stages for males
- Prepubertal pubic hair/penis/testes
- Scanty long slightly pigmented hair, slight penis enlargement, scrotum enlarged texture altered
- Darker begins to curl small amount hair, penis longer, testes larger
- Resembles adult type but less in quantity, coarse and curly. Larger, glans breadth increased penis. Larger testes.
- Adult distribution pubic hear, spread to medial surface thighs. Adult penis and testes.
What do ovarian oestrogens drive?
Growth of breast and female genitalia
What do testicular androgens drive?
Development of male genitalia and body hair. Enlarging larynx and laryngeal muscles.
What do ovarian and adrenal androgens drive?
Growth of female pubic and axillary hair.
Describe the gonadal changes of the ovaries
Newborn 2cm, 500K follicles
None ovulate in childhood but many cystic or atresic
Puberty 83K follicles remain
Ovaries of pubescent females weigh more than those of a child because some remaining follicles have enlarged
Describe the gonadal changes of the testes
Testes descend from abdominal cavity during 7-8th month of fetal life under control of MIS and testosterone via gubernaculum
Newborn - seminiferous tubules contain spermatogonia and Sertoli cells. Some Leydig cells present at birth but are invisible by 6 months.
9 years - spermatogenesis begins, Leydig cells visible.
14-15 years - mature spermatozoa produced, testes increase in size 24 fold due to enlarged diameter of seminiferous tubules (tubules fill with testicular fluid).
What is cryptorchid testes?
Failure of testes to descend
Overheat
Damage of all except Sertoli and Leydig cells - damage is caused by the spermatogenesis itself
How much cooler does spermatogenesis require than the abdominal cavity?
3.1 degrees
How do you treat cryptorchidism?
Surgery or treatment with gonadotrophins or GnRH to cause descent
How do plasma levels of hormones in neonates change?
First 20 weeks - LH and FSH high when plasma levels are at the adult level
Then secretion ceases and levels are low or undetectable through childhood and juvenile stages
First change is rise in FSH, following by increasingly pulsatile LH
Changes occur whether or not testosterone is present
What releases oestradiol or oestrone?
Oestradiol = large growing follicles in ovary Oestrone = body fat
What is the first hormonal change of puberty? What causes it?
BOTH SEXES
Adrenarche
Rise in DHEA
Weak androgens released in large quantities from adrenal gland
What secretes oestrogens in males?
Sertoli cells
What is the name of a slight growth of mammary cells in males?
Gynaecomastia
Normally goes away within 2 years
What determines secondary sexual characteristics?
Balance of androgens v oestrogens
How do you treat acne?
Antibiotics, salicylic acid, benzoyl peroxide, female hormones/androgen antagonists
GH
Source
Effect
Pathology
Ant pit near to puberty
Growth of long bones and tissues (along with androgens)
Protein synthesis and glucose homeostasis
GH deficiency –> short stature, delayed sexual maturation
Thyroid hormones
Source
Effect
Pathology
Thyroid gland secondary to TSH from ant pit
Rise in metabolic rate for both sexes
Essential for body growth
How do gonads, pituitary and hypothalamus change in puberty?
No obvious maturation
Gonads gain ability to respond to gonadotropins very early in life - follicular growth and atresia can occur in fetal and neonate ovary.
Fetal pit can secrete gonadotropins in response to GnRH stim, (but does become more sensitive)
Hypothalamus starts secretion of GnRH during second trimester of fetal development
Define sexual dimorphism
Differences in body composition between males and females
What is lean body mass?
Skeletal and muscle mass (+ extra water mass makes males heavier)
How do children suppress sexual maturation? + evidence
- Brain gonadostat - Steroids in children negative feedback on GnRH. Hypothalamus v sensitive to steroidal inhibition during childhood (6-15 times more than in adults). Evidence - smaller amount of oestrogen required to lower LH/FSH levels in girls than adult women.
- LECTURER THINKS IS THIS
Central inhibition of GnRH pulse power: GnRH pulse generator inhibited by other brain areas during childhood. Evidence - specific lesions in rat brain cause early puberty + children born without gonads (no steroids for negative feedback) still have low LH/FSH levels through childhood and GnRH release occurs at normal age. - ONLY GIRLS: Oestrogens can exert positive feedback on gonadotropin secretion but not in younger females. May result from maturation of hypothalamic GnRH surge centre or ability of pituitary to synthesise and store adequate gonadotropins.
What is the model of sexual response called?
EPOR
Desire
Excitement: response to psychogenic stimuli (visual or memory) or somatogenic stimuli ((touching, friction) resulting in increased arousal or sexual tension
Plateau: arousal is maintained and intensified causing increased pelvic haemodynamics
Orgasm: if level of arousal is adequate, a few seconds of involuntary climax relieves sexual tension by a wave of intense pleasure. Associated with ejaculation
Resolution: arousal dissipated and pelvic haemodynamics returned to the unstimulated state
What is the absolute refractory period? What does it depend on?
eIn men, time when sexual re-arousal and orgasm impossible
Duration depends on age and situational factors (novelty of partner, context)
Women don’t undergo same period