ESTROGEN AND SEQUENTIAL MOVEMENT

Normal movement depends in part on the brain's ability to produce and use dopamine, which regulates basal ganglia function. Behavioral, neur oanatomical, and neurophysiological data suggest that the basal gangli a are critical for the performance of sequential movement. Dopaminergi c function is modulated by estrogen in animals and in humans. To test the hypothesis that estrogen modulates sequential movement, this study measured the reaction time (RT) and movement time (MT) of 15 women an d 10 men in a choice RT task with sequential responses. Higher levels of estradiol in women's blood were associated with faster total moveme nt time (RT plus MT). Testosterone levels in women's blood were not as sociated with keypressing performance. Hormone levels in men's blood w ere unrelated to keypressing performance. These results suggest that w omen's motor performance was affected by hormone levels, and that estr ogen may interact with dopaminergic function in women.