TY - JOUR
T1 - Sex and gender in infection and immunity
T2 - addressing the bottlenecks from basic science to public health and clinical applications
AU - Pasin, Chloé
AU - Consiglio, Camila R.
AU - Huisman, Jana S.
AU - De Lange, Ann Marie G.
AU - Peckham, Hannah
AU - Vallejo-Yagüe, Enriqueta
AU - Abela, Irene A.
AU - Islander, Ulrika
AU - Neuner-Jehle, Nadia
AU - Pujantell, Maria
AU - Roth, Olivia
AU - Schirmer, Melanie
AU - Tepekule, Burcu
AU - Zeeb, Marius
AU - Hachfeld, Anna
AU - Aebi-Popp, Karoline
AU - Kouyos, Roger D.
AU - Bonhoeffer, Sebastian
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2023 The Authors.
PY - 2023/7/5
Y1 - 2023/7/5
N2 - Although sex and gender are recognized as major determinants of health and immunity, their role is rarely considered in clinical practice and public health. We identified six bottlenecks preventing the inclusion of sex and gender considerations from basic science to clinical practice, precision medicine and public health policies. (i) A terminology-related bottleneck, linked to the definitions of sex and gender themselves, and the lack of consensus on how to evaluate gender. (ii) A data-related bottleneck, due to gaps in sex-disaggregated data, data on trans/non-binary people and gender identity. (iii) A translational bottleneck, limited by animal models and the underrepresentation of gender minorities in biomedical studies. (iv) A statistical bottleneck, with inappropriate statistical analyses and results interpretation. (v) An ethical bottleneck posed by the underrepresentation of pregnant people and gender minorities in clinical studies. (vi) A structural bottleneck, as systemic bias and discriminations affect not only academic research but also decision makers. We specify guidelines for researchers, scientific journals, funding agencies and academic institutions to address these bottlenecks. Following such guidelines will support the development of more efficient and equitable care strategies for all.
AB - Although sex and gender are recognized as major determinants of health and immunity, their role is rarely considered in clinical practice and public health. We identified six bottlenecks preventing the inclusion of sex and gender considerations from basic science to clinical practice, precision medicine and public health policies. (i) A terminology-related bottleneck, linked to the definitions of sex and gender themselves, and the lack of consensus on how to evaluate gender. (ii) A data-related bottleneck, due to gaps in sex-disaggregated data, data on trans/non-binary people and gender identity. (iii) A translational bottleneck, limited by animal models and the underrepresentation of gender minorities in biomedical studies. (iv) A statistical bottleneck, with inappropriate statistical analyses and results interpretation. (v) An ethical bottleneck posed by the underrepresentation of pregnant people and gender minorities in clinical studies. (vi) A structural bottleneck, as systemic bias and discriminations affect not only academic research but also decision makers. We specify guidelines for researchers, scientific journals, funding agencies and academic institutions to address these bottlenecks. Following such guidelines will support the development of more efficient and equitable care strategies for all.
KW - bottlenecks
KW - immunity
KW - infection
KW - sex and gender
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85165411948&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1098/rsos.221628
DO - 10.1098/rsos.221628
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85165411948
SN - 2054-5703
VL - 10
JO - Royal Society Open Science
JF - Royal Society Open Science
IS - 7
M1 - 221628
ER -