Research Reveals Male Brains Wired to Ignore Food in Favour of Sex

According to a new research, male brains are wired to ignore food and instead search for a mate, the Telegraph reports.

The University of Rochester Medical Centre research examines how small differences in the brain's circuitry can explain the behavioural differences between males and females.

"While we know that human behaviour is influenced by numerous factors, including cultural and social norms, these findings point to basic biological mechanisms that may not only help explain some differences in behaviour between males and females, but why different sexes may be more susceptible to certain neurological disorders," said Assistant Professor Douglas Portman in the Department of Biomedical Genetics and Center for Neural Development and Disease.

In the research, scientists examined two genders of worms, males and hermaphrodites –organisms having reproductive organs of both males and female sexes.

The worms were put into a petri dish and given food. They had two options; either to feed or search for a mate.

The research revealed that the male worms ignored the food source and instead searched for a mate.

Also in the equation were genetically modified male worms that were engineered to be more sensitive to the smell of food. These engineered to be "hungrier" male worms were ten times less successful at mating as they preferred food over mating.

The hermaphrodites also chose food over mating, which in turn proved the intrinsic need of men.

The study proves that when given a choice between food and mating, the normal worms suppressed their hunger in favour of finding a mate.

"These findings show that by tuning the properties of a single cell, we can change behaviour. This adds to a growing body of evidence that sex-specific regulation of gene expression may play an important role in neural plasticity and, consequently, influence differences in behaviours - and in disease susceptibility - between thesexes," said Professor Portman.