Editing Biology and sexual orientation (section)

=== Prenatal thyroid theory ===
[[File:Thyroid PCOS Orientation.jpg|thumb]]
Prenatal thyroid theory of same-sex attraction/gender dysphoria has been based on clinical and developmental observations of youngsters presenting to child psychiatry clinics in Istanbul/Turkey. The report of 12 cases with same-sex attraction/gender dysphoria born to mothers with thyroid diseases was first presented in EPA Congress, Vienna (2015) and published as an article in the same year.<ref>{{cite journal | vauthors = Sabuncuoglu O |date= March 2015 |title=Maternal Thyroid Dysfunction During Pregnancy May Lead to Same-sex Attraction/gender Nonconformity in the Offspring: Proposal of Prenatal Thyroid Model |journal=European Psychiatry |volume=30 |pages=374 |doi=10.1016/s0924-9338(15)30294-7 |s2cid= 143359069 |issn=0924-9338}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal | vauthors = Sabuncuoglu O | title = High Rates of Same-Sex Attraction/Gender Nonconformity in the Offspring of Mothers with Thyroid Dysfunction During Pregnancy: Proposal of Prenatal Thyroid Model | journal = Mental Illness | volume = 7 | issue = 2 | pages = 5810 | date = September 2015 | pmid = 26605033 | pmc = 4620281 | doi = 10.4081/mi.2015.5810 }}</ref> The extremely significant relationship between the two conditions suggested an independent model, named as ''Prenatal Thyroid Model of Homosexuality''. According to Turkish child & adolescent psychiatrist Osman Sabuncuoglu, who generated the theory, maternal thyroid dysfunction may lead to abnormal deviations from gender-specific development in the offspring. Autoimmune destructive process as seen in Hashimoto's thyroiditis, diminished supply of thyroid hormones, and impacts on prenatal androgen system were all considered as contributing mechanisms. In a follow-up theoretical paper,<ref>{{cite journal | vauthors = Sabuncuoglu O | title = Towards a further understanding of prenatal thyroid theory of homosexuality: Autoimmune thyroiditis, polycystic ovary syndrome, autism and low birth weight | journal = Mental Illness | volume = 9 | issue = 2 | pages = 7325 | date = October 2017 | pmid = 29142667 | pmc = 5661141 | doi = 10.4081/mi.2017.7325 }}</ref> previous research findings indicating higher rates of polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) in female-to-male transsexuals and lesbian women were conceived as an indication of ''Prenatal Thyroid Model'' since PCOS and autoimmune thyroiditis are frequently comorbid diseases. Likewise, increased rates of autism spectrum disorder in children born to mothers with thyroid dysfunction and overrepresentation of ASD individuals in gender dysphoria populations suggest such an association. A second group of young children with this pattern were presented in IACAPAP Congress,<ref>{{cite web |date=30 August 2022 |title=A second group of youngsters with gender nonconformity/same-sex attraction born to mothers with thyroid dysfunction in pregnancy |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/326723698 |vauthors=Sabuncuoglu O}}</ref> Prague (2018). Furthermore, 9 additional cases were reported in IACAPAP Congress,[https://www.researchgate.net/publication/380934726_Maternal_and_familial_thyroid_dysfunction_associated_with_gender_dysphoriasame-sex_attraction_in_the_offspring_The_cases_identified_between_2018_and_2023] Rio de Janeiro (Sabuncuoglu, 2024).

The findings from previous research in LGBT populations had called for attention to be paid to thyroid system.<ref>{{cite journal | vauthors = Ellis L, Hellberg J |date= January 2005 |title=Fetal exposure to prescription drugs and adult sexual orientation |journal=Personality and Individual Differences |volume=38 |issue=1 |pages=225–236 |doi=10.1016/j.paid.2004.04.004 |issn=0191-8869}}</ref><ref name="nielsen2013"/> A commentary by Jeffrey Mullen, published shortly after the 2015 article, underlined the importance of ''Prenatal Thyroid Model'' and supported developments in this field.<ref>{{cite journal | vauthors = Mullen J | title = A Link Between Maternal Thyroid Hormone and Sexual Orientation? | journal = Mental Illness | volume = 8 | issue = 1 | pages = 6591 | date = May 2016 | pmid = 27403279 | doi = 10.4081/mi.2016.6591 | pmc = 4926038 }}</ref> Afterwards, several authors have emphasized the role of thyroid system in sexuality while citing the ''Prenatal Thyroid Model.''<ref name="Carosa_2018">{{cite journal | vauthors = Carosa E, Lenzi A, Jannini EA | title = Thyroid hormone receptors and ligands, tissue distribution and sexual behavior | journal = Molecular and Cellular Endocrinology | volume = 467 | pages = 49–59 | date = May 2018 | pmid = 29175529 | doi = 10.1016/j.mce.2017.11.006 | hdl = 11573/1132156 | s2cid = 36883213 | hdl-access = free }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal | vauthors = Basavanhally T, Fonseca R, Uversky VN | title = Born This Way: Using Intrinsic Disorder to Map the Connections between SLITRKs, TSHR, and Male Sexual Orientation | journal = Proteomics | volume = 18 | issue = 21–22 | pages = e1800307 | date = November 2018 | pmid = 30156382 | doi = 10.1002/pmic.201800307 | s2cid = 52115603 }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal | vauthors = Wang Y, Wu H, Sun ZS | title = The biological basis of sexual orientation: How hormonal, genetic, and environmental factors influence to whom we are sexually attracted | journal = Frontiers in Neuroendocrinology | volume = 55 | pages = 100798 | date = October 2019 | pmid = 31593707 | doi = 10.1016/j.yfrne.2019.100798 | s2cid = 203667616 }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal | vauthors = Castello R, Caputo M | date = September 2019 |title=Thyroid diseases and gender |journal=Italian Journal of Gender-Specific Medicine | volume = 5 |issue = September–December | pages = 136–141 |doi=10.1723/3245.32148}}</ref> Among them, Carosa et al. concluded that thyroid hormones, affecting the human sexual function strongly, the thyroid gland must be considered, along with the genitals and the brain, a sexual organ.<ref name="Carosa_2018" /> As a tertiary source, an authoritative book on the subject of interplay between endocrinology, brain and behavior has also cited the thyroid-homosexuality proposal article in the latest edition.<ref>{{cite book | vauthors = Castellanos-Cruz L, Bao AM, Swaab DF  | chapter = Sexual Identity and Sexual Orientation |date=2017 | veditors = Pfaff DW, Joels M | title = Hormones, Brain and Behavior | edition = Third |pages=279–290 |publisher=Elsevier | oclc = 971456116 | isbn = 978-1-78684-205-3 }}</ref>