Sex dierences in brain-behavior relationships between verbal episodic memory and resting regional cerebral blood ̄ow

Women have better verbal memory, and higher rates of resting regional cerebral blood ̄ow (rCBF). This study examined whether there are also sex di€erences in the relationship between verbal episodic memory and resting rCBF. Twenty eight healthy right-handed volunteers (14 male, 14 female) underwent a neuropsychological evaluation and a Positron Emission Tomography (PET) O-water study. Immediate and delayed recall was measured on the logical memory subtest of the Wechsler Memory Scale Ð Revised (WMS-R), and on the California Verbal Learning Test (CVLT). Resting rCBF (ml/100 g/min) was calculated for four frontal, four temporal, and four limbic regions of interest (ROIs). Women had better immediate recall on both WMS-R and CVLT tasks. Sex di€erences in rCBF were found for temporal lobe regions. Women had greater bilateral blood ̄ow in a mid-temporal brain region. There were also sex di€erences in rCBF correlations with performance. Women produced positive correlations with rCBF laterality in the temporal pole. Greater relative CBF in the left temporal pole was associated with better WMS-R immediate and delayed recall in women only. These results suggest that trait di€erences in temporal pole brain-behavior relationships may relate to sex di€erences in verbal episodic memory. # 2000 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.