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Towards a more comprehensive neuroscience of hormonal contraceptives

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The neuroscience of hormonal contraceptives is a vital but relatively new field. Existing studies are limited in size and scope, but they nonetheless highlight that the effects of hormonal contraceptives on the nervous system are complex and can vary because of individual differences, contraceptive type and formulation, and timing of use, among other factors. Neuroscientists can empower individuals with information about the biopsychological effects of hormonal contraceptives by delving more deeply into these effects in rigorous randomized controlled trials, large-scale studies that examine population-level trends, and dense imaging or intensive longitudinal studies that examine individual-level effects.

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Acknowledgements

B.P. was supported by European Research Council grant number 850953. E.G.J. was supported by The Ann S. Bowers Women’s Brain Health Initiative. A.M.B. was supported by the Jacobs Foundation. N.P. was supported by R00DA045749. We are grateful to L. Pritschet for helpful feedback on earlier drafts of this manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychiatry & Biobehavioral Sciences, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA

    Nicole Petersen

  2. University of Michigan, Department of Psychology, Ann Arbor, MI, USA

    Adriene M. Beltz

  3. Social Sciences Division, New College of Florida, Sarasota, FL, USA

    Kathleen V. Casto

  4. Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, University of California, Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA, USA

    Caitlin M. Taylor & Emily G. Jacobs

  5. Neuroscience Research Institute, University of California, Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA, USA

    Caitlin M. Taylor & Emily G. Jacobs

  6. Department of Women’s and Children’s Health, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden

    Inger Sundström-Poromaa

  7. Department of Psychology and Centre for Cognitive Neuroscience, University of Salzburg, Salzburg, Austria

    Belinda Pletzer

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  1. Nicole Petersen
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  2. Adriene M. Beltz
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  3. Kathleen V. Casto
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  4. Caitlin M. Taylor
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  5. Emily G. Jacobs
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  6. Inger Sundström-Poromaa
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  7. Belinda Pletzer
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Corresponding authors

Correspondence to Nicole Petersen, Adriene M. Beltz, Kathleen V. Casto, Caitlin M. Taylor, Emily G. Jacobs, Inger Sundström-Poromaa or Belinda Pletzer.

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Competing interests

I.S.-P. has served occasionally on advisory boards or acted as an invited speaker at scientific meetings for Bayer Health Care, Gedeon Richter, Peptonics, Shire/Takeda, and Sandoz. The remaining authors declare no competing interests.

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Nature Neuroscience thanks Margaret McCarthy and Klara Sifalakis-Spalek for their contribution to the peer review of this work.

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Petersen, N., Beltz, A.M., Casto, K.V. et al. Towards a more comprehensive neuroscience of hormonal contraceptives. Nat Neurosci 26, 529–531 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41593-023-01273-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41593-023-01273-z

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