Which sequence correctly represents the order of pubertal hormonal changes?

Which sequence correctly represents the order of pubertal hormonal changes?

• A. 2, 3, 4, 1
• B. 2, 4, 3, 1
• C. 4, 2, 3, 1
• D. 3, 2, 4, 1

Answer: (A)

Pubertal progression is a cascade that starts with the hypothalamus releasing GnRH in a pulsatile fashion. That GnRH stimulus tells the pituitary to secrete gonadotropins (LH and FSH). Those gonadotropins then act on the gonads to produce sex steroids (estrogen in girls, testosterone in boys). It is the rise in these gonadal hormones that drives the visible puberty changes, such as breast development and growth spurts in girls or facial and body hair and deepening voice in boys. As the levels of sex steroids rise, they feed back to the hypothalamus and pituitary to fine-tune the axis, completing the sequence. So the sequence that starts with the rise in gonadotropins, followed by the increase in gonadal steroids, then the appearance of pubertal changes, and finally the regulatory feedback, best reflects the order of pubertal hormonal changes.

Pubertal progression is a cascade that starts with the hypothalamus releasing GnRH in a pulsatile fashion. That GnRH stimulus tells the pituitary to secrete gonadotropins (LH and FSH). Those gonadotropins then act on the gonads to produce sex steroids (estrogen in girls, testosterone in boys). It is the rise in these gonadal hormones that drives the visible puberty changes, such as breast development and growth spurts in girls or facial and body hair and deepening voice in boys. As the levels of sex steroids rise, they feed back to the hypothalamus and pituitary to fine-tune the axis, completing the sequence.

So the sequence that starts with the rise in gonadotropins, followed by the increase in gonadal steroids, then the appearance of pubertal changes, and finally the regulatory feedback, best reflects the order of pubertal hormonal changes.