Sex differences and the HPA axis: implications for psychiatric disease.

Depression is twice as common in women as in men. Given that stress plays a major role in the onset of this disorder, sex differences in the response to stress could influence women's vulnerability to depression. The data presented suggest that greater stress responsiveness in women may be influenced by ovarian steroids. This greater stress responsiveness and resistance to glucocorticoid feedback may be one biological factor contributing to the greater incidence of depression in women.