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Sexual differentiation

Sexual differentiation
Differentiation of the male and female reproductive systems does not occur until the fetal period of development.
Anatomical terminology

Sexual differentiation is the process of development of the sex differences between males and females from an undifferentiated zygote.[1][2] Sex determination is often distinct from sex differentiation; sex determination is the designation for the development stage towards either male or female, while sex differentiation is the pathway towards the development of the phenotype.[3]

In many species, testicular or ovarian differentiation begins with appearance of Sertoli cells in males and granulosa cells in females.[4] [citation needed]

As male and female individuals develop from embryos into mature adults, sex differences at many levels develop, such as genes, chromosomes, gonads, hormones, anatomy, and psyche. Beginning with determination of sex by genetic and/or environmental factors, humans and other organisms proceed down different pathways of differentiation as they grow and develop.

  1. ^ Beukeboom, Leo W.; Perrin, Nicolas (2014). The Evolution of Sex Determination. Oxford University Press. p. 158. ISBN 978-0199657148.
  2. ^ Koob, George F. (2010). Encyclopedia of Behavioral Neuroscience. Elsevier. p. 21. ISBN 978-0080914558.
  3. ^ Beukeboom LW, Perrin N (2014). The Evolution of Sex Determination. Oxford University Press. p. 16. ISBN 978-0-19-965714-8.
  4. ^ Pandian, T. J. (2013-05-07). Endocrine Sex Differentiation in Fish. CRC Press. doi:10.1201/b14771. ISBN 978-0-429-10222-6.

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