Open AccessNo relationship between autistic traits and salivary testosterone concentrations in men from the general population
Author(s) -
Diana Weiting Tan,
Murray T. Maybery,
Michael Clarke,
Renata Di Lorenzo,
Melissa O Evans,
Michael Manci,
Christina Panos,
Andrew J. O. Whitehouse
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
plos one
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.99
H-Index - 332
ISSN - 1932-6203
DOI - 10.1371/journal.pone.0198779
Subject(s) - testosterone (patch) , autism , autism spectrum disorder , autistic traits , population , medicine , physiology , endocrinology , psychology , clinical psychology , developmental psychology , environmental health
It is suggested that testosterone may play a part in the higher prevalence of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) in males compared to females. Previous studies have reported elevated postnatal testosterone levels in children and women with ASD but not in men. We compared levels of salivary testosterone across 67 undergraduate males ( M age 19.5 yrs, SD 1.92) selected for low, mid-range and high levels of autistic traits assessed using the Autism-spectrum Quotient. Analyses revealed no significant differences in testosterone concentrations across the three groups. The current data add to the increasing evidence for the lack of relationship between autistic traits and postnatal levels of testosterone in men.