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Two of the most significant differences between puberty in females and puberty in males are the age at which it begins, and the major sex steroids involved, the androgens and the estrogens. Although there is a wide range of normal ages, females typically begin the process of puberty around age 10½; males at ages 11½—12.
In a female, on the other hand, absence of these levels of androgens results in development of typically female genitals. [4] Following this, sexual differentiation of the brain occurs; sex hormones exert organizational effects on the brain that will be activated in puberty. [4]
Mini-puberty is a transient hormonal activation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal (HPG) axis that occurs in infants shortly after birth. This period is characterized by a surge in the secretion of gonadotropins (LH and FSH) and sex steroids (testosterone in males and estradiol in females), similar to but less intense than the hormonal changes that occur in puberty during adolescence.
The supply of follicles decreases slightly before birth, and to 500,000 by puberty for the average case (populations at puberty range from 25,000 to 1.5 million). [4] By virtue of the "inefficient" nature of folliculogenesis (discussed later), only 400–500 of these follicles will ever reach the preovulatory stage.
Research has showed that the average age of starting puberty continues to drop over time: One study published in 2020 shows that the average starting age of puberty for girls has decreased by ...
The embryo and subsequent early fetus appear to be sexually indifferent, looking neither like a male or a female. Over the next several weeks, hormones are produced that cause undifferentiated tissue to transform into either male or female reproductive organs. This process is called sexual differentiation.
Starting puberty significantly early — younger than age 8 in girls, 9 in boys — may have health effects lasting into adulthood, including higher risks of breast cancer, diabetes and heart disease.
The embryo upregulates hCG, drives growth of the cell, and upregulates P4 production driving development. hCG and P4 direct changes in the mother to enable successful pregnancy (see below) via upregulation of specific hormones that act to direct both endocrinological and biological changes within the mother for successful pregnancy.