Episode 2: Neuroscience of Sexy Times

Dec. 30, 2021

Sex is a complex but inescapable part of our lives. Lots of people do it every day, it affects our advertisements, our clothing, even our interactions with other people. But have you ever wondered what's happening in your brain during sex? Tune in to learn a little bit about the brain regions, circuits, and neurotransmitters at play during sexy times. 

If you have any comments, questions, concerns, queries, or complaints, please email me at [email protected] or DM me at @NeuroscienceAmateurHour on Instagram. Citations and relevant papers below: 

•  Hellier et al., Female Sexual Behavior in Mice Controlled by Kisspeptin Neurons, Nature Communications (2018). 
• Seok, J., Sohn, J., Neural Substrates of Sexual Desire in Individuals with Problematic Hypersexual Disorder, Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience (2015). 
• Stahl, S., Illustrating the circuits of sexual desire, Journal of Clinical Psychiatry (2010). 
• Yang, L., Comninos, A., Dhillo, W., Intrinsic links among sex, emotion, and reproduction, Cellular and Molecular Life Sciences (2018). 
• Leuner, B., Glasper, E., Gould, E., Sexual Experience Promotes Adult Neurogenesis in the Hippocampus Despite an Initial Elevation in Stress Hormones, PloS One (2010). 
• Baird, A., Sex and the Single Amygdala, Part 2 of your Sexiest Brain Bits, Psychology Today (2019). 
• Micevych, P., Meisel, R., Integrating Neural Circuits Controlling Female Sexual Behavior, Frontiers in Systems Neuroscience (2017). https://doi.org/10.3389/fnsys.2017.00042
• Jennings, K., De Lecea, L., Neural and Hormonal Control of Sexual Behavior, Endocrinology, Volume 161, Issue 10 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1210/endocr/bqaa150
• Baird, A. et al., Neurological Control of human sexual behavior: insight from new lesion studies. Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery, and Psychiatry, Volume 78, Issue 10, (2006). https://jnnp.bmj.com/content/78/10/1042
• Oei, N., Rombouts, S., Soeter, R., van Gerven, J., Both, S., Dopamine modulates reward system activity during subconscious processing of sexual stimuli, Neuropsychopharmacology, Volume 37 (2012). https://www.nature.com/articles/npp201219
• Magon, N., Kalra, S., The orgasmic history of oxytocin, love, lust and labor, Indian Journal of Endocrinology and Metabolism, (2011). 10.4103/2230-8210.84851
• Algoe, S., Kurtz, L., Grewen, K., Oxytocin and Social Bonds: The Role of Oxytocin in Perceptions of Romantic Partners’ Bonding Behaviors, Psychological Science, Volume 28, Issue 12 (2017).

Support the show