The neuroendocrine control of puberty and reproduction is fascinatingly complex, with up- and down-regulation of key reproductive hormones during fetal, infantile, and later childhood periods that determine the correct function of the hypothalamic–pituitary–gonadal axis and the timing of puberty. Neuronal development is a vital element of these processes, and multiple conditions of disordered puberty and reproduction have their etiology in abnormal neuronal migration or function. Although there are numerous documented cases across multiple conditions wherein patients have both neurodevelopmental disorders and pubertal abnormalities, this has mostly been described ad hoc and the associations are not clearly documented. In this review, we aim to describe the overlap between these two groups of conditions and to increase awareness to ensure that puberty and reproductive function are carefully monitored in patients with neurodevelopmental conditions, and vice versa. Moreover, this commonality can be explored for clues about the disease mechanisms in these patient groups and provide new avenues for therapeutic interventions for affected individuals.

中文翻译：

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青春期和神经发育障碍：共同的病因？


青春期和生殖的神经内分泌控制非常复杂，在胎儿、婴儿和童年后期，关键生殖激素的上调和下调决定了下丘脑-垂体-性腺轴的正确功能和青春期的时间。神经元发育是这些过程的重要组成部分，青春期和生殖障碍的多种情况的病因是神经元迁移或功能异常。尽管有许多记录在案的多种情况下的病例，其中患者同时患有神经发育障碍和青春期异常，但这大多是临时描述的，并且没有明确记录其关联。在本综述中，我们旨在描述这两组疾病之间的重叠，并提高认识，以确保神经发育疾病患者的青春期和生殖功能得到仔细监测，反之亦然。此外，可以探索这种共性以获取有关这些患者群体中疾病机制的线索，并为受影响的个体提供新的治疗干预途径。