Atrial fibrillation (AF) is the most common sustained arrhythmia in women and men worldwide. During the past century, a range of risk factors has been associated with AF, severe complications from ...the arrhythmia have been identified, and its prevalence has been increasing steadily. Whereas evidence has accumulated regarding sex-specific differences in coronary heart disease and stroke, the differences between women and men with AF has received less attention. We review the current literature on sex-specific differences in the epidemiology of AF, including incidence, prevalence, risk factors, and genetics, and in the pathophysiology and the clinical presentation and prognosis of patients with this arrhythmia. We highlight current knowledge gaps and areas that warrant future research, which might advance understanding of variation in the risk factors and complications of AF, and ultimately aid more-tailored management of the arrhythmia.
A future challenge will be to interpret immunological differences between the sexes in the context of infectious disease pathogenesis.\n The binding of sex steroids to their respective steroid ...receptors directly influences signaling pathways associated with the production of cytokines and chemokines 22. Interpretation of sex differences in the expression of X-linked genes is challenging because sex hormones or sex chromosome complement can still contribute to the observed differential gene expression.
Autoimmune diseases affect 7.5% of the US population, and they are among the leading causes of death and disability. A notable feature of many autoimmune diseases is their greater prevalence in ...females than in males, but the underlying mechanisms of this have remained unclear. Through the use of high-resolution global transcriptome analyses, we demonstrated a female-biased molecular signature associated with susceptibility to autoimmune disease and linked this to extensive sex-dependent co-expression networks. This signature was independent of biological age and sex-hormone regulation and was regulated by the transcription factor VGLL3, which also had a strong female-biased expression. On a genome-wide level, VGLL3-regulated genes had a strong association with multiple autoimmune diseases, including lupus, scleroderma and Sjögren's syndrome, and had a prominent transcriptomic overlap with inflammatory processes in cutaneous lupus. These results identified a VGLL3-regulated network as a previously unknown inflammatory pathway that promotes female-biased autoimmunity. They demonstrate the importance of studying immunological processes in females and males separately and suggest new avenues for therapeutic development.
Men are consistently overrepresented in severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection, and coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) severe outcomes, including higher fatality ...rates. These differences are likely due to gender-specific behaviors, genetic and hormonal factors, and sex differences in biological pathways related to SARS-CoV-2 infection. Several social, behavioral, and comorbid factors are implicated in the generally worse outcomes in men compared with women. Underlying biological sex differences and their effects on COVID-19 outcomes, however, have received less attention. The present review summarizes the available literature regarding proposed molecular and cellular markers of COVID-19 infection, their associations with health outcomes, and any reported modification by sex. Biological sex differences characterized by such biomarkers exist within healthy populations and also differ with age- and sex-specific conditions, such as pregnancy and menopause. In the context of COVID-19, descriptive biomarker levels are often reported by sex, but data pertaining to the effect of patient sex on the relationship between biomarkers and COVID-19 disease severity/outcomes are scarce. Such biomarkers may offer plausible explanations for the worse COVID-19 outcomes seen in men. There is the need for larger studies with sex-specific reporting and robust analyses to elucidate how sex modifies cellular and molecular pathways associated with SARS-CoV-2. This will improve interpretation of biomarkers and clinical management of COVID-19 patients by facilitating a personalized medical approach to risk stratification, prevention, and treatment.
How do modern women in developing countries experience sexuality and love? Drawing on a rich array of interview, ethnographic, and survey data from her native country of Kenya, Sanyu A. Mojola ...examines how young African women, who suffer disproportionate rates of HIV infection compared to young African men, navigate their relationships, schooling, employment, and finances in the context of economic inequality and a devastating HIV epidemic. Writing from a unique outsider-insider perspective, Mojola argues that the entanglement of love, money, and the transformation of girls into "consuming women" lies at the heart of women's coming-of-age and health crises. At once engaging and compassionate, this text is an incisive analysis of gender, sexuality, and health in Africa.
•This collection offers approaches to reimagine and refine the the research agenda on gender as a determinant of health.•Methodological, conceptual, and practical challenges and opportunities in ...gender-related research reflect the multiple pathways through which gender influences health.•Attending to complex issues of gender and power, and advancing education on gender-related concepts, can improve population health and address health inequities.
Depression in persons with physical disabilities may be more common than in the general population. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between physical disability and ...depression by gender among adults, using a large, nationally representative sample.
This study used data from the Korean Longitudinal Study of Aging, Wave one through four, and ran a series of random effect panel regression models to test the relationship between physical disability status and depression by gender. We tested the moderating effect of gender on the relationship between disability status and depression level by examining the significance of the cross-product term between disability status and gender.
After controlling for self-rated health, marital status, employment status, education, and age, subjects who were female or diagnosed as having any disability presented higher levels of depression scores. Further, the difference in terms of their depression level measured by Center for Epidemiologic Studies Short Depression Scale (CES-D 10) scores between those who were diagnosed as having any disability and those who were not was greater for females than for their male counterparts.
This study reaffirmed that disability is the risk factor of depression, using longitudinal data. In addition, female gender is the effect modifier rather than the risk factor. The effect of gender in the non-disability group, mostly composed of older persons, is limited. On the contrary, the female disability group showed more depressive symptoms than the male disability group. The gender difference in the disability group and the role of culture on these differences need further research.
PDF
