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COLUMBUS, Ohio – Women have claimed for years that their bodies react differently whether they’re pregnant with a male or female baby. Some studies suggest that a baby’s sex could play a role in why some women report differences with morning sickness, cravings and other symptoms based on the sex of their baby.
Now evidence, published in the February issue of the journal Brain, Behavior, and Immunity, shows the sex of a baby is associated with pregnant women’s immune responses.
Researchers from The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center followed 80 pregnant women across the course of their pregnancy and examined whether women exhibited different levels of immune markers called cytokines based on fetal sex. Analyses were conducted on levels of cytokines in the blood and levels produced by a sample of immune cells that were exposed to bacteria in the lab.
“While women didn’t exhibit differences in blood cytokine levels based on fetal sex, we did find that the immune cells of women carrying female fetuses produced more pro-inflammatory cytokines when exposed to bacteria. This means that women carrying female fetuses exhibited a heightened inflammatory response when their immune system was challenged, compared to women carrying male fetuses,” said Amanda Mitchell, a postdoctoral researcher in the Institute for Behavioral Medicine Research at Ohio State’s Wexner Medical Center and principal investigator of the study.
Inflammation is a critical part of the immune response involved in wound healing and responses to viruses, bacteria and chronic illnesses. However, excessive inflammation is stressful to the body and can contribute to sickness-related symptoms, such as achiness and fatigue. While more research is needed, the heightened inflammation observed among women carrying female fetuses could play a role in why women tend to experience exacerbated symptoms of some medical conditions, including asthma, when carrying a female versus a male fetus.
wexnermedical.osu.edu
Now evidence, published in the February issue of the journal Brain, Behavior, and Immunity, shows the sex of a baby is associated with pregnant women’s immune responses.
Researchers from The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center followed 80 pregnant women across the course of their pregnancy and examined whether women exhibited different levels of immune markers called cytokines based on fetal sex. Analyses were conducted on levels of cytokines in the blood and levels produced by a sample of immune cells that were exposed to bacteria in the lab.
“While women didn’t exhibit differences in blood cytokine levels based on fetal sex, we did find that the immune cells of women carrying female fetuses produced more pro-inflammatory cytokines when exposed to bacteria. This means that women carrying female fetuses exhibited a heightened inflammatory response when their immune system was challenged, compared to women carrying male fetuses,” said Amanda Mitchell, a postdoctoral researcher in the Institute for Behavioral Medicine Research at Ohio State’s Wexner Medical Center and principal investigator of the study.
Inflammation is a critical part of the immune response involved in wound healing and responses to viruses, bacteria and chronic illnesses. However, excessive inflammation is stressful to the body and can contribute to sickness-related symptoms, such as achiness and fatigue. While more research is needed, the heightened inflammation observed among women carrying female fetuses could play a role in why women tend to experience exacerbated symptoms of some medical conditions, including asthma, when carrying a female versus a male fetus.
Ohio State Study: Baby's Sex Plays a Role in Pregnant Women's Immunity
COLUMBUS, Ohio – Women have claimed for years that their bodies react differently whether they’re pregnant with a male or female baby. Some studies suggest that a baby’s sex could play a role in why some women report differences with morning sickness, cravings and other symptoms based on the sex...
wexnermedical.osu.edu
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