Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

Skip to comments.

Brain Changes Seen in Gay Sheep, U.S. Study Finds
reuters uk ^ | 3/8/04

Posted on 03/07/2004 5:32:14 PM PST by knak

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Researchers who found homosexual rams in a herd of sheep said they had found changes in the brains of the "gay" animals.

The results, published in the latest issue of the Journal Endocrinology, tend to support studies in humans that have found anatomical differences between the brains of heterosexual men and homosexual men.

The researchers at the Oregon Health & Science University School of Medicine found certain groups of brain cells were different between rams and ewes in a part of the sheep brain controlling sexual behavior.

And in rams that preferred to mate with other males, this area was smaller than in males that preferred females.

"There's a difference in the brain that is correlated with sexual partner preference rather than gender of the animal you're looking at," said Kay Larkin, an OHSU electron microscopist who worked on the study.

"This particular study, along with others, strongly suggests that sexual preference is biologically determined in animals, and possibly in humans," added Charles Roselli, a professor of physiology and pharmacology who led the research team.

"The hope is that the study of these brain differences will provide clues to the processes involved in the development of heterosexual, as well as homosexual behavior."

Animal experts have found that about 8 percent of domestic rams display preferences for other males as sexual partners.

"Same-sex attraction is widespread across many different species," said Roselli, who worked with a team at Oregon State University and the U.S. Department of Agriculture's U.S. Sheep Experiment Station in Dubois, Idaho.

They looked at 27 adult, 4-year-old sheep of mixed Western breeds including eight male sheep that preferred to mate with females, nine that mated mostly with males and 10 ewes.

They found a densely packed cluster of nerve cells in the hypothalamus of the sheep brain, which they named the ovine sexually dimorphic nucleus or oSDN.

The hypothalamus regulates sex hormone secretion, blood pressure, body temperature, water balance, and food intake, and also helps regulate complex behaviors such as sexual behavior.

The oSDN in rams that preferred females was "significantly" larger and contained more neurons than in male-oriented rams and in ewes. There were also hormonal differences between the brains of homosexual and heterosexual sheep.


TOPICS: Front Page News
KEYWORDS: animalsrapetoo; homosexual; homosexualagenda; homosexualsheep; monogamy; pseudoscience; quacks; researchstudy; sodomy; study
Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first 1-2021-4041-6061-8081-96 next last
ok, maybe they'll find a cure and stop all the nonsense!
1 posted on 03/07/2004 5:32:14 PM PST by knak
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | View Replies]

To: knak
Actually maybe theyll find a gene that can be dectected in a fetus, then the mother can practice her "right to choose"

that would cause a crack up on the left
2 posted on 03/07/2004 5:33:37 PM PST by raloxk
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: knak
Bahhhhhhhh Fabulous !!!!!
3 posted on 03/07/2004 5:34:37 PM PST by cmsgop ( HAS ANYONE SEEN Spalding Grey ?)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: knak
So they have mental problems?
4 posted on 03/07/2004 5:34:47 PM PST by chance33_98 (Check out profile page for banners, if you need one freepmail me and I will make one for you)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: knak
Actually its the opposite, homosexaul behavior results in abnormality in the brain
5 posted on 03/07/2004 5:36:39 PM PST by apackof2 (I won't be satisfied until I am too smart for my own good)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: knak
Shear folly.
6 posted on 03/07/2004 5:37:52 PM PST by exit82 (Toll free number for the Capitol switchboard:1-800-648-3516--let your reps in DC know what you think)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: knak
wow what a major breakthrough!!! now just tell all the homo's to stop smashing their heads together and we can cure homosexuality once and for all.
7 posted on 03/07/2004 5:38:01 PM PST by TheRedSoxWinThePennant
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: knak
Queer Eye for the Sheep Guy.
8 posted on 03/07/2004 5:48:45 PM PST by martin_fierro (A v v n c v l v s M a x i m v s)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: knak
Frisco Mayor to Marry Sheep

(You know it's coming.)

9 posted on 03/07/2004 5:49:05 PM PST by atomicpossum (Fun pics in my profile)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: raloxk
Good one! :-)
10 posted on 03/07/2004 5:50:12 PM PST by Avenger
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 2 | View Replies]

To: knak
***Animal experts have found that about 8 percent of domestic rams display preferences for other males as sexual partners.***

Now, wait a minute. Something is too PC here.
These Animals are not sexually active all year long, but only once a year. When the female ewe (Pronounced "you") ovulates she gives off an odor that attracts the males. So, HOW DO THESE MALES ATTRACT OTHER MALES IF THEY DO NOT OVULATE?
The same goes for several other species.
11 posted on 03/07/2004 5:50:52 PM PST by Ruy Dias de Bivar
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: knak
I wonder if the rams actually prefer other rams or is it because they are rejected by the ewes? Maybe the females recognize some undesireable trait in these males that make them poor choices as mates.
12 posted on 03/07/2004 5:51:13 PM PST by mollynme (cogito, ergo freepum)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: exit82
Ewe are getting rambunctious. He said sheepishly.
13 posted on 03/07/2004 5:52:00 PM PST by speedy
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 6 | View Replies]

To: knak
Well that explains that sheepish grin Barney Franks always has.
14 posted on 03/07/2004 5:52:36 PM PST by Jeff Chandler (Why the long face, John?)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: mollynme
Could also be that most of the rams are penned up together and away from the ewes to prevent fighting.
15 posted on 03/07/2004 5:53:06 PM PST by CWOJackson (What are you complaining about, she called me compassionate...)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 12 | View Replies]

To: knak
And in rams that preferred to mate with other males, this area was smaller than in males that preferred females.

Maybe they're just stupid. They always miss the obvious.

16 posted on 03/07/2004 5:53:12 PM PST by atomicpossum (Fun pics in my profile)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: knak
Sorry, this is junk science taken to ridiculous proportions. Any farmer will tell you that animals get confused by scent and season. Besides, males don't "mate" with other males and females don't "mate" with females.

Oh, the lies....

17 posted on 03/07/2004 5:54:25 PM PST by anniegetyourgun
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: mollynme

I dont want to meet up with a homosexual ram like this one.

18 posted on 03/07/2004 5:55:04 PM PST by corkoman (Logged in - have you?)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 12 | View Replies]

To: speedy
Wool you stop punning?

Say, you signed up at FR a day before I did. Another Class of '98 member.
19 posted on 03/07/2004 5:55:41 PM PST by exit82 (Toll free number for the Capitol switchboard:1-800-648-3516--let your reps in DC know what you think)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 13 | View Replies]

To: CWOJackson
I don't care about why/how a person is homosexual, but this study is a load of crap.

Unneutered male animals will mount anything in sight. Ask a farmer or a pet owner. If anything maybe the genetic abnormality is an inability to tell which animals are females in heat.
20 posted on 03/07/2004 5:57:24 PM PST by Nataku X (<a href="http://www.michaelmoore.com">Miserable Failure</a>)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 15 | View Replies]


Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first 1-2021-4041-6061-8081-96 next last

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.

Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson