Français
Español
English
Portuguese
A doctoral student at Ben-Gurion University specializing in immune system gender differences explains why mortality rates from coronavirus are significantly higher in men.
By United with Israel Staff
Shani Gal-Oz, a doctoral student at Ben-Gurion University specializing in immune system gender differences, explained various factors causing significantly higher mortality rates in men than in women from coronavirus.
Though it is known that the elderly and immunocompromised are disproportionally affected by coronavirus and have a much higher rate of mortality, men fall victim to the dreaded virus in staggeringly higher numbers.
At a recent White House press conference, Coronavirus Task Force response coordinator Deborah Birx said that mortality in men was twice as much as in females in every age group. In China, two-thirds of the hospital patients were male. Seventy percent of fatalities in Italy were male.
Virologists have long noted that men are more susceptible to viral agents than women, and women tend to have a more active immune systems than men. This is seen with common autoimmune disorders from which nine out of 10 sufferers are men.
Gal-Oz offered several insights into this phenomenon. She noted that women develop more macrophage cells from birth than men. Macrophages are a type of white blood cell in the immune system that engulf and digest cellular debris, foreign substances, microbes, cancer cells, and anything else that does not have the type of proteins specific to healthy body cells on its surface.
“We have seen that a portion of the macrophage population is active without immune stimulation, a phenomenon that has not been observed in males,” Gal-Oz said, according to The Ladders. “Portions of the X chromosome are involved in the regulation of gene expression of the immune system on other chromosomes and men have an X chromosome and a Y, while women have two copies of the X.”
Similarly, a SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome related to coronavirus) study on mice, found that female rodents were protected from the disease due to estrogen.
Gal-Oz hypothesizes that a woman’s body is designed to better fight viruses to protect a fetus.
“In pregnancy, the woman’s body has to avoid a negative response to the development inside of it of an entire organism, half of whose DNA is totally foreign,” she said. “Various mechanisms have to activate to suppress the immune reaction of the body so that it doesn’t act against the embryo.”
Additionally, behaviors more often found in men make them more susceptible to respiratory illnesses. For example, men tend to smoke more than women, have more cardiovascular disease due to poorer diet, and maintain lower standards of hygiene.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that, shockingly, both sexes are lax in hand-washing after using public bathrooms. However, while 65 percent of women do so, only 31 percent of men do.
HELP ISRAELIS BATTLE CORONA!
Donate to the Corona Emergency Relief Fund. Coronavirus has taken a huge toll on the people of Israel. The poor, elderly and ill are most vulnerable.
Israeli soldiers, security officers and medical care providers operate under great danger and risk to life.
Over 1 million Israelis are out of work. Many cannot make ends meet. We provide financial aid, food, medical supplies and more. Funds are distributed where needed most. The time to act is now!
United with Israel extends a special note of appreciation to the Genesis Prize for their generous support.
Do You Love Israel? Make a Donation - Show Your Support!
Donate to vital charities that help protect Israeli citizens and inspire millions around the world to support Israel too!
Now more than ever, Israel needs your help to fight and win the war -- including on the battlefield of public opinion.
Antisemitism, anti-Israel bias and boycotts are out of control. Israel's enemies are inciting terror and violence against innocent Israelis and Jews around the world. Help us fight back!
