Behavioral Endocrinology Research Paper (Outline Due Thursday April 6; Paper Due Tuesday May 2):

For the research paper I want you to pick an interesting question/issue that is directly related to the topic of hormone—behavior interactions (see below for some recommended topics). In your research paper I want you to discuss at least 3 research reports in detail that you have read related to your topic. These research reports need to be primary reports of scientific empirical studies that are published in scientific journals, i.e. you need to read the original reports, not just review papers that discuss the original reports. You should, however, supplement your paper with additional information that you obtain from books and review papers related to your topic. Your paper should be 7-12 pages double spaced. I will give you a handout in class that will further describe some of the specific information and formating that I will be looking for in your papers and outline.

Some recommended Research Paper topics:

1. Can melatonin treatment be a useful treatment for bipolar disorder?

2. Is light therapy an effective treatment for bipolar disorder?

3. Do alterations in estrogen and progesterone levels produced by oral contraceptives have effects on mood, cognitive tasks, perceptual tasks or motor tasks?

4. Does stress have an enhancing or impairing effect on memory processes as a result of stress-induced release of stress hormones?

5. Since the hallmark study by Martha McClintock (Nature 229:244-245) a number of studies have examined menstrual synchrony in women. How robust is this phenomenon and what are the necessary social and biological factors leading to the phenomenon?

6. Are there abnormalities in hormone secretion associated with Alzheimer's disease, and if so, what is the causal relationship between hormones and Alzheimer's disease?

7. Is estrogen therapy an effective treatment for Alzheimer's disease?

8. Does stress via altered hormone levels accelerate aging?

9. Does academic stress have an effect on hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis function? For example, does examination stress suppress gonadal steroid levels?

10. Are there organizational effects of gonadal steroids on sexual orientation in humans?

11. Are activational effects of androgens on behavior in human males dependent on aromatase activity?

12. What triggers the onset of puberty? In other words, how does the body "know" that it is time to enter puberty?

13. The incidence of major depression is about twice as high in women as in men. Is this gender difference due to organizational and/or activational hormonal differences?

14. What is DHEA and does it have any beneficial therapeutic effects?

15. Is chemical castration an effective means of treating sex offenders?

16. Is there evidence for individual differences in circadian "clocks" contributing to a "Morning" person vs. a "Night" person?

17. Does use of anabolic steroids for body building have negative effects on psychological function and behavior?

18. Are environmental toxins leading to reductions in male or female fertility?