Sex-specific differences in plasma lipid profiles are associated with Gulf War Illness

Nearly 250,000 veterans from the 1990-1991 Gulf War have Gulf War Illness (GWI), a condition with heterogeneous pathobiology that remains difficult to diagnose. As such, availability of blood biomarkers that reflect the underlying biology of GWI would help clinicians provide appropriate care to ill veterans. In this study, we measured blood lipids to examine the influence of sex on the association between blood lipids and GWI diagnosis.

Plasma lipid extracts from GWI (n = 100) and control (n = 45) participants were subjected to reversed-phase nano-flow liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry analysis.

An influence of sex and GWI case status on plasma neutral lipid and phospholipid species was observed. Among male participants, triglycerides, diglycerides, and phosphatidylcholines were increased while cholesterol esters were decreased in GWI cases compared to controls. In female participants, ceramides were increased in GWI cases compared to controls. Among male participants, unsaturated triglycerides, phosphatidylcholine and diglycerides were increased while unsaturated cholesterol esters were lower in GWI cases compared to controls. The ratio of arachidonic acid- to docosahexaenoic acid-containing triglyceride species was increased in female and male GWI cases as compared to their sex-matched controls.

Differential modulation of neutral lipids and ratios of arachidonic acid to docosahexaenoic acid in male veterans with GWI suggest metabolic dysfunction and inflammation. Increases in ceramides among female veterans with GWI also suggest activation of inflammatory pathways. Future research should characterize how these lipids and their associated pathways relate to GWI pathology to identify biomarkers of the disorder.