Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Experiment Videos

Sexual dimorphism in innate immunity.

George Moxley1, Danielle Posthuma, Patricia Carlson

  • 1McGuire VAMC, Richmond, VA 23249, USA. gmoxley@hsc.vcu.edu

Arthritis and Rheumatism
|January 31, 2002
PubMed
Summary

Women exhibit a nearly 30% lower innate immune response, measured by tumor necrosis factor (TNF) levels after lipopolysaccharide (LPS) stimulation. This difference is largely independent of HLA and estrogen levels, but influenced by specific TNF gene variations.

Related Concept Videos

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

Multimodal Proteomics Reveals Dysregulated Secretion and ECM Remodelling in Schizophrenia Patient iPSC-Derived Astrocytes.

Cells·2026
Same author

Structural elucidation and gut barrier-protective effects of a glucomannan polysaccharide fraction from Lanzhou lily bulbs.

International journal of biological macromolecules·2026
Same author

Hair cortisol-related resting-state effective connectivity between the amygdala, hippocampus, and striatum: A biomarker perspective on the chronically stressed brain.

Progress in neuro-psychopharmacology & biological psychiatry·2026
Same author

A Bias-Tunable Pseudo-Planar Heterojunction Organic Photodetector for Single-Pixel Computational Spectrometer and Filterless Color Sensor.

ACS applied materials & interfaces·2026
Same author

Machine-Learning Decomposition Identifies a Big Two Structure in Human Personality with Distinct Neurocognitive Profiles.

Advanced science (Weinheim, Baden-Wurttemberg, Germany)·2026
Same author

Simplifying causal gene identification in GWAS loci.

PLoS genetics·2026

Area of Science:

  • Immunology
  • Genetics
  • Human Physiology

Background:

  • Innate immunity exhibits significant variation among individuals.
  • Understanding factors influencing immune response variability, such as sex and genetic markers, is crucial for personalized medicine.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the relationship between sex, human leukocyte antigen (HLA) region, and innate immune response variation.
  • To determine if sex influences tumor necrosis factor (TNF) levels in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated whole-blood cultures.

Main Methods:

  • Collected blood samples from 72 women and 159 men.
  • Stimulated whole blood with LPS in vitro and measured TNF levels in supernatants using immunoassay.
  • Employed multivariate and maximal-likelihood modeling to analyze sex and TNF microsatellite allelic effects.

Related Experiment Videos

Main Results:

  • Females displayed a nearly 30% lower mean LPS-stimulated TNF level compared to males (P < 0.0001).
  • Sex remained a significant independent predictor of TNF levels after adjusting for covariates.
  • Specific TNF microsatellite alleles showed significant, sex-dependent associations with TNF levels, indicating genetic influence.

Conclusions:

  • Female subjects exhibit a significantly lower innate immune response to LPS stimulation.
  • This sex-based difference in TNF production is largely independent of the HLA-region TNF locus and plasma estrogen levels.
  • Genetic variations within the TNF gene contribute to sex-specific differences in immune response.