Gender Specific Differences in the Immune Response to Infection

Abstract

There are many instances where males and females differ in the susceptibility to infections. The reason for these differences in susceptibility is multifactorial. The primary cause is thought to be due to differences induced by sex hormones and their effects on gene expression as well as the immune system, but may also be due to innate physiological differences between males and females. This review summarizes gender specific differences seen in infections caused by bacteria, fungi, parasites and viruses. Ultimately, gender specific differences appear to be dependent on the microbe causing the infection, as not every infection with a specific microbial type results in increased susceptibility of one gender over the other. This suggests that there is an interaction between gender specific immune differences and the specific immune response to individual microbes.

17β-estradiol contributes to the accumulation of myeloid-derived suppressor cells in blood by promoting TNF-α secretion

“…Clinical and experimental researches have demonstrated naturally occurring gender differences in immune responses [1,2]. Interestingly, our and others' studies have shown that cells of males and females display several different features and behaviors [3][4][5].…”

MHC‐I provides both quantitative resistance and susceptibility to blood parasites in blue tits in the wild

“…EV-7 of a specifi c infection (Atkinson et al 2008, McClelland andSmith 2011). Leucocytozoon is a parasite with characteristic clinical phases including an initial acute phase followed by a latent or chronic infection (Valki ū nas 2005).…”

Female resistance to pneumonia identifies lung macrophage nitric oxide synthase-3 as a therapeutic target

“…Experimental models find that female mice show greater systemic resistance to pneumococci (Weiss et al, 1973; Kadioglu et al, 2011) and to many other (but not all) pathogens (McClelland and Smith, 2011). Epidemiologic studies of human pneumonia observe a greater incidence of community-acquired pneumonia in males (Gutiérrez et al, 2006) and show that males are at greater risk than females for pneumonia after admission to hospital after adjusting for other risk factors such as smoking and alcohol use (Offner et al, 1999; Andermahr et al, 2002; Gannon et al, 2004).…”