Exam 11: Sex, Gender, and Sexuality.

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Answer will include that classifying a person as female or male must take into account the following biological factors: (1)genetic sex, that is, XX is female and XY is male; (2)gonadal sex, that is, females have ovaries and males have testes; (3)hormonal sex, that is females have a predominance of estrogens and males a predominance of androgens; and (4)genital sex, that is, females have a clitoris and vagina and males have a penis and scrotum.Genetic sex is determined at the instant of conception: Two X chromosomes initiate female development; an X chromosome plus a Y chromosome produces a male.A woman's ovum always provides an X chromosome because she has two Xs in her own genetic makeup.In contrast, one-half of the male's sperm carry X chromosomes and the other half carry Ys.Even at conception, variations may occur because some individuals begin life with too many or too few sex chromosomes.While genetic sex stays the same throughout life, it alone does not determine biological sex.In general, sexual characteristics also are related to the effects of sex hormones before birth.Hormones are chemical substances secreted by endocrine glands.The gonads (or sex glands)affect sexual development and behavior by secreting estrogens (female hormones)and androgens (male hormones).The gonads in the male are the testes; female gonads are the ovaries.The adrenal glands (located above the kidneys)also supply sex hormones.Everyone normally produces estrogens and androgens.Sex differences are related to the proportion of these hormones found in the body.In fact, prenatal development of male or female anatomy is largely due to the presence or absence of testosterone, one of the androgens, secreted mainly by the testes.For the first six weeks of prenatal growth, genetically female and male embryos look identical.However, if a Y chromosome is present, testes develop in the embryo and supply testosterone.This stimulates growth of the penis and other male structures.In the absence of testosterone, the embryo will develop female reproductive organs and genitals, regardless of genetic sex.It might be said, then, that nature's primary impulse is to make a female.Prenatal growth does not always match genetic sex.For both genetic females and males, hormonal problems before birth may produce an intersexual person in which the person has ambiguous sexual anatomy.A genetic male won't develop male genitals if too little testosterone is available.Even if testosterone is present, an inherited androgen insensitivity syndrome, or unresponsiveness to testosterone, may exist.Again, the result is female development.Similarly, androgens must be at low levels or absent for an XX embryo to develop as a female.For instance, a developing female may be masculinized by the anti-miscarriage drug progestin, or by a problem known as congenital adrenal hyperplasia.In this syndrome, the child's body produces estrogen, but a genetic abnormality causes the adrenal glands to release too much androgen.In such cases, a female child may be born with genitals that are more male than female.