Coltan G. Parker

Across animal species, female and male brains differ.  Why?  And where do those differences come from?  I'm trying to answer these questions by studying the common clownfish Amphiprion ocellaris.  These fish change sex.  They begin their lives as males, then later in life can change sex and become female.

When the fish change sex their bodies and brains change, too.  I am investigating how a particular part of the brain called the preoptic area (POA) changes.  This is a brain region that all vertebrates have, and it shows sex differences in many species including humans.  I hope that my work will give us a fuller understanding of the nature of sex in the brain.