A new peer-reviewed study has identified differences in brain activity among transgender women experiencing gender dysphoria, finding associations with childhood trauma, gene expression, and neurotransmitter systems involved in brain function.
The research, published October 23 in the medical journal BMC Medicine, examined how neurological activity and early-life experiences may relate to gender dysphoria. Researchers identified patterns involving brain regions associated with self-referential processing and emotional regulation.
The study, titled “Altered brain activity and childhood trauma associate with gene and neurotransmitter patterns in transgender women with gender dysphoria”, included 44 transgender women diagnosed with gender dysphoria, 40 cisgender men, and 42 cisgender women.
Participants underwent resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and completed questionnaires measuring childhood trauma and experiences related to gender dysphoria.
Researchers discovered reduced spontaneous activity in the posterior cingulate cortex, a brain region involved in self-referential processing, alongside increased activity in a region of the cerebellum.
The transgender participants also reported higher levels of childhood trauma than the cisgender comparison groups, particularly emotional abuse and emotional neglect.
Further analysis revealed that greater reported childhood trauma was associated with reduced activity in the posterior cingulate cortex. Researchers also identified statistical relationships between brain activity, childhood trauma scores, and measures of gender dysphoria.
Beyond brain imaging, investigators examined publicly available gene expression data and neurotransmitter maps. Their findings suggested associations involving dopamine and serotonin systems, which participate in mood regulation, motivation, and other neurological processes.
However, the findings require careful interpretation.
The study does not establish that childhood trauma causes someone to become transgender. Its observational design identifies associations rather than demonstrating cause and effect. It also cannot determine whether the observed neurological differences preceded or followed participants’ experiences of gender dysphoria.
Importantly, the research examined a relatively small group of transgender women experiencing gender dysphoria. Its conclusions cannot automatically be extended to all transgender people, including those who do not experience clinically significant dysphoria.
The gene expression and neurotransmitter findings were also based on comparisons with existing reference datasets rather than direct measurements of those biological processes in individual participants.
The researchers suggest that their findings could contribute to a more comprehensive understanding of the biological and psychological factors associated with gender dysphoria.
Additional research involving larger and more diverse populations, including longitudinal studies, will be necessary to establish how these neurological patterns develop and what role, if any, childhood experiences play in their formation.
Source: Chen et al., BMC Medicine, October 23, 2026. Read the original research.
