Researchers Yan Liu and Yun'ai Jiang from Beijing's National Institute of Biological Sciences in China studied the chemical serotonin and its relationship to preference in sexual partners in mice. The researchers bred male mice whose brains were not receptive to serotonin by knocking out the Lmxb1 gene, which is needed to produce serotonin. When these mice were given a choice of partners, they attempted to mount both sexes 80 percent of the time. A second study using mice lacking the Tph2 gene, which is also responsible for producing serotonin, also did not indicate a preference for female mice. This study showed for the first time a connection between a neurotransmitter in the brain and mammalian sexual orientation, though experts advised against drawing conclusions about human sexual orientation.
-compiled by Surabhi Bhatt
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