Central Neural States Relating Sex and Pain

by Richard J. Bodnar, Donald W. Pfaff, Kathryn Grace Commons

Overview

Hormones strongly influence and even "drive" certain primitive behaviors. In Central Neural States Relating Sex and Pain, Richard J. Bodnar, Kathryn Commons, and Donald W. Pfaff examine hormonal, neural, and genetic mechanisms of reproductive, pain-sensing, and pain-inhibitory systems. The authors show that there are remarkable neuroanatomical, biochemical, and functional overlaps among these systems. They consider sensory inputs triggering both classes of behaviors and focus on the role of sex hormones in modulating both forms of behavior. Sex hormones acting in different regions of the brain not only energize reproductive behaviors but also modulate opioid-dependent pain-inhibitory pathways. The authors also summarize some intriguing gender differences in hormone actions and responsivity to pain.

The clinical implications of this field of research are numerous. Central Neural States Relating Sex and Pain will appeal to anyone interested in new ways of looking at behavioral dispositions as they are influenced by specific genetic, neural, and hormonal states.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780801868276
Publisher:	Johns Hopkins University Press
Publication date:	05/07/2002
Series:	Advances in Systems Neuroscience and Behavioral Physiology
Pages:	280
Product dimensions:	6.10(w) x 9.10(h) x 0.80(d)
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

Richard J. Bodnar is professor and chair of the Department of Psychology at Queens College of the City University of New York.

Kathryn Commons is a postdoctoral fellow in the Laboratory of Neurobiology and Behavior at the Rockefeller University.

Donald W. Pfaff is professor and head of the Laboratory of Neurobiology and Behavior at the Rockefeller University. He is a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and a member of the National Academy of Sciences.

Table of Contents

Series Foreword
Preface
List of Abbreviations
Part I. Requirement for Motivational State Concepts
A. Physics, Brain, and Behavior
B. Motivation in Its Generalized and Specific Aspects
C. Motivation for Females to Seek Males
D. Hypothalamic and Preoptic Mechanisms Involved in Two Types of Motivational Change
E. Summary
Part II. Ascending Arousal Systems Activated
A. Ascending Reticular Activating Systems
B. Structure of Arousal States
C. Application to Sexual Behavior
D. Clinical Observations on Human Awareness and Arousal
E. Mood
F. Summary
Part III. Descending Systems: The Importance of Opioid Peptides and Analgesia
A. Opioid Peptides in Pain and Analgesia
B. Analgesia Induced by Stress and Environmental Variables
C. Hormonal Control of the Enkephalin Gene: One Paradox and Three Solutions
D. Intimate Relations among Inhibitory Systems
E. Hypothalamic Projections
F. Gender Differences in Analgesia
G. Pain and Sex: Similarity of Reproductive Behavior and Analgesia - Ascending and Descending Pathways
H. Summary
Part IV. Inferences and Arguments
A. Gene/Behavior Relationships: Application to Opioid Peptides
B. Biological Importance of the Relations among Sex, Arousal, and Analgesia
References
Index

What People are Saying About This

Gregory F. Ball

This book is welcome in that it makes connections between two well studied but related neural systems: the systems that control sex and pain. This is a timely attempt that [will] be of great interest to neuroscientists. The scholarly achievement of this study is apparent; the authors have mastered a substantial literature. (Gregory F. Ball, Ph.D., Johns Hopkins University)

From the Publisher

This book is welcome in that it makes connections between two well studied but related neural systems: the systems that control sex and pain. This is a timely attempt that [will] be of great interest to neuroscientists. The scholarly achievement of this study is apparent; the authors have mastered a substantial literature.
—Gregory F. Ball, Ph.D., Johns Hopkins University

This scholarly and articulate book explores the authors' novel and provocative hypothesis that neural mechanisms controlling reproductive behavior and pain are intricately intertwined. In the process of such exploration, the reader is provided with extensive, up-to-date, and unique reviews—highly valuable regardless of how one views the hypothesis—of behavioral, neurophysiological, hormonal, neurochemical, and genetic research on mechanisms of arousal, analgesia, stress, and reproductive behavior.
—Karen J. Berkley, Ph.D., McKenzie Professor of the Neuroscience Program at Florida State University

Karen J. Berkley

This scholarly and articulate book explores the authors' novel and provocative hypothesis that neural mechanisms controlling reproductive behavior and pain are intricately intertwined. In the process of such exploration, the reader is provided with extensive, up-to-date, and unique reviews—highly valuable regardless of how one views the hypothesis—of behavioral, neurophysiological, hormonal, neurochemical, and genetic research on mechanisms of arousal, analgesia, stress, and reproductive behavior. (Karen J. Berkley, Ph.D., McKenzie Professor of the Neuroscience Program at Florida State University)

Editorial Reviews

Reviewer: Celso Agner, MD, MS, MSc (Michigan Neurology Partners)
Description: This summary of the recent work on the correlation between sex and pain is a required title about the current research on the relationship between sexual and nociceptive pathways in the central nervous system.
Purpose: The purpose is to address different aspects of sexual and pain pathways. The authors meet their objectives clearly. The subject of this book is an important topic in neuroscience, due to the recent advances in the field of sexual hormones, behavior, and common neuropeptides.
Audience: The audience is composed primarily of neuroscientists. In my view, neurologists with a well-rounded knowledge of basic neuroscience would also be interested in this book. However, it is difficult to predict whether many of the clinical professionals would be able to follow most of the concepts presented here. All authors are credible authorities in the field. Donald Pfaff, who has described estrogen receptors in the brain, is among the editors.
Features: In four sections, the authors describe, comment upon, and critically analyze the different pathways involved in the processing of nociceptive and sexual information in animals. Through multiple experimental behavior studies, the authors are able to determine the points of convergence between sex and pain. The pictures depict all details in the text and the references are appropriate. A strong aspect of the book is its comprehensible description of complex concepts that have been developed over the past few decades. The index is helpful and the quality of the print, appropriate for this book.
Assessment: This is an important work for general medical libraries, as well as for neuroscience and psychiatry departments, that answers long-standing questions based on experimental research.

Doody's Review Service

4 Stars! from Doody

This book is welcome in that it makes connections between two well studied but related neural systems:the systems that control sex and pain. This is a timely attempt that [will] be of great interest to neuroscientists. The scholarly achievement of this study is apparent; the authors have mastered a substantial literature.

Gregory F. Ball

This scholarly and articulate book explores the authors' novel and provocative hypothesis that neural mechanisms controlling reproductive behavior and pain are intricately intertwined. In the process of such exploration,the reader is provided with extensive,up-to-date,and unique reviews-highly valuable regardless of how one views the hypothesis-of behavioral,neurophysiological,hormonal,neurochemical,and genetic research on mechanisms of arousal,analgesia,stress,and reproductive behavior.

Karen J. Berkley