Nature Communications (Apr 2020)

Sex-specific innate immune selection of HIV-1 in utero is associated with increased female susceptibility to infection

  • Emily Adland,
  • Jane Millar,
  • Nomonde Bengu,
  • Maximilian Muenchhoff,
  • Rowena Fillis,
  • Kenneth Sprenger,
  • Vuyokasi Ntlantsana,
  • Julia Roider,
  • Vinicius Vieira,
  • Katya Govender,
  • John Adamson,
  • Nelisiwe Nxele,
  • Christina Ochsenbauer,
  • John Kappes,
  • Luisa Mori,
  • Jeroen van Lobenstein,
  • Yeney Graza,
  • Kogielambal Chinniah,
  • Constant Kapongo,
  • Roopesh Bhoola,
  • Malini Krishna,
  • Philippa C. Matthews,
  • Ruth Penya Poderos,
  • Marta Colomer Lluch,
  • Maria C. Puertas,
  • Julia G. Prado,
  • Neil McKerrow,
  • Moherndran Archary,
  • Thumbi Ndung’u,
  • Andreas Groll,
  • Pieter Jooste,
  • Javier Martinez-Picado,
  • Marcus Altfeld,
  • Philip Goulder

DOI
https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-020-15632-y
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 11, no. 1
pp. 1 – 9

Abstract

Read online

Sex differences in the immune response to vaccines and infections have been well described in children and adults. Here the authors describe, in a cohort of 177 HIV-infected infants, innate immune sex differences in fetal life that increase female susceptibility to intrauterine HIV infection and increase the chances of subsequent HIV remission in infected males.