Abstract
Sex differences in peripheral immune responses are well recognized. This is associated with sex differences in many immunological diseases. As the intestinal microbiota is known to influence the immune system, such sex differences in immune responses may be a consequence of sex-specific microbiota. Therefore, this mini-review discusses sex differences in intestinal microbiota and the possible role of microbiota in shaping sexually dimorphic immunity. Sex differences in microbiota composition are clearly found in mice studies and also in human studies. However, the lack of standardization in human studies may mask the sexual dimorphism in microbiota composition in human studies, since many factors such as age, genetic background, BMI, diet, and sex hormones appear to interfere with the sexual dimorphism in microbiota composition. Only a few mice studies found that differences in gut microbiota composition are causative for some aspects of sexually dimorphic immunity. Therefore, future studies should focus on a causal relationship between sexually dimorphic immunity and microbiota, considering the abovementioned interfering confounding factors. This would benefit the development of more sex-specific effective treatment options for immunological diseases.
Highlights
Sex differences in immune responses are well recognized, but the mechanisms and reasons behind the dimorphic responses are still incompletely understood [1]
Present knowledge shows that sex has an effect on the microbiota composition in both mice and humans
Pertinent sex differences in microbiota and effects on immunity are more difficult to proof
Summary
As the intestinal microbiota is known to influence the immune system, such sex differences in immune responses may be a consequence of sex-specific microbiota. This mini-review discusses sex differences in intestinal microbiota and the possible role of microbiota in shaping sexually dimorphic immunity. Future studies should focus on a causal relationship between sexually dimorphic immunity and microbiota, considering the abovementioned interfering confounding factors. This would benefit the development of more sex-specific effective treatment options for immunological diseases
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