Lydia Becker Institute of Immunology and Inflammation, Division of Immunology, Immunity to Infection and Respiratory Medicine, Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health, University of Manchester, Manchester Academic Health Science Centre, Manchester, United Kingdom.
Manchester Centre for Clinical Neurosciences, Salford Royal Hospital, Salford, United Kingdom.
Front Immunol. 2022 Nov 24;13:945762. doi: 10.3389/fimmu.2022.945762. eCollection 2022.
Autoimmune diseases are characterized by a significant sex dimorphism, with women showing increased susceptibility to disease. This is, at least in part, due to sex-dependent differences in the immune system that are influenced by the complex interplay between sex hormones and sex chromosomes, with contribution from sociological factors, diet and gut microbiota. Sex differences are evident in the number and function of lymphocyte populations. Women mount a stronger pro-inflammatory response than males, with increased lymphocyte proliferation, activation and pro-inflammatory cytokine production, whereas men display expanded regulatory cell subsets. Ageing alters the immune landscape of men and women in differing ways, resulting in changes in autoimmune disease susceptibility. Here we review the current literature on sex differences in lymphocyte function, the factors that influence this, and the implications for autoimmune disease. We propose that improved understanding of sex bias in lymphocyte function can provide sex-specific tailoring of treatment strategies for better management of autoimmune diseases.
自身免疫性疾病的特征是显著的性别二态性，女性对疾病的易感性增加。这至少部分是由于免疫系统中的性别依赖性差异，这些差异受到性激素和性染色体之间复杂相互作用的影响，同时还受到社会学因素、饮食和肠道微生物群的影响。性别的差异在淋巴细胞群体的数量和功能上表现明显。女性比男性表现出更强的促炎反应，表现为淋巴细胞增殖、激活和促炎细胞因子产生增加，而男性则表现出扩大的调节性细胞亚群。衰老以不同的方式改变男性和女性的免疫景观，导致自身免疫性疾病易感性的变化。在这里，我们回顾了关于淋巴细胞功能性别差异的现有文献，影响这种差异的因素，以及对自身免疫性疾病的影响。我们提出，更好地理解淋巴细胞功能中的性别偏见可以为针对自身免疫性疾病的治疗策略提供性别特异性的调整。
