Lesbianism came under the microscope this month as stories of anti-lesbian drugs and female-on-female mice surfaced in international news.
Firstly, three US academics have blown the whistle on a steroid that prevents masculine qualities in prenatal girls – labelled the anti-lesbian drug.
Northwestern University bio-ethicist Alice Dredger and two colleagues described the controversial use of Dexamethasone, a steroid used by pregnant women to eliminate the chance of infant girls developing a genetic condition that can lead to the development of ambiguous genitalia in the womb.
The genetic condition, Congenital Adrenal Hyperplasia (CAH) can result in a deeper voice, facial hair and masculine-looking genitalia.
Medical professionals were outraged by the revelation published in February, Newsweek reported.
Across the Pacific, South Korean researchers have allegedly found a gene that can turn female mice into lesbians.
The FucM gene influences the oestrogen levels in the brain that, if deleted, prompt them to try and mate with other female mice.
Professor Chankyu Park of the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology in Daejon told the Daily Telegraph: ‘The mutant female mouse underwent a slightly altered developmental programme in the brain to resemble the male brain in terms of sexual preference,’ Park said.
The study, published in the BMC Genetics journal found that female mice became more masculine when they were exposed to more oestrogen, the result of deleting the FucM gene.
Pink News reported that this would not happen in humans.
Back in the US, a new report has indicated as many as two-thirds of women who feel lesbian attractions may have changed their sexual orientation over time.
Southern Connecticut State University researcher Christan Moran said many women who develop lesbian feelings in later life foster fears from society’s reaction and do not publically come out.
This research flies in the face of the notion that homosexuality is determined by genes as opposed to environmental factors, the Daily Telegraph reported.
Benn Dorrington
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