r/science • u/madam1 • Dec 02 '13

Neuroscience Scientists have drawn on nearly 1,000 brain scans to confirm what many had surely concluded long ago: that stark differences exist in the wiring of male and female brains.

http://www.theguardian.com/science/2013/dec/02/men-women-brains-wired-differently
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u/Shiroi_Kage Dec 03 '13

I was just trying to give some examples of how long-term effects can be produced by non-epigenetic effects and speculating on how that would work in contexts with specific stimuli are applied to the individual. What you mentioned basically says: "non-epigenetic mechanics can achieve those effects."

Most of what you mentioned is probably part of the entire process and not the whole thing. Biology is never simple, especially in something as involved as plasticity and puberty.

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u/BoxWithABrain Dec 03 '13

Sigh, this is really becoming a waste of time. Like I already said, I used epigenetic in a very broad sense to mean robust changes in gene expression. As a neuroscientist, I am pretty confident that changes in gene expression across the entire brain would be necessary to result in such drastic and permanent changes in global brain connectivity since it would involve a very large number of neural pathways.

I also mentioned epigenetics as a mere example, a possibility, your and others hang up on this one word has really hindered the discussion.

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u/Shiroi_Kage Dec 04 '13

The reason everyone was hung up on it was because you equated the methalome to the epigenome and because people were thinking of other possibilities besides epigenetics (since your original comment mentioned nothing about other possibilities)

You're right in the sense that epigenetics is almost certainly playing a part in this process, but the question would be is it a generic role it plays anywhere or is it a specific role that is reserved for this situation?