Could Sex/Gender Differences in ACE2 Expression in the Lungs Contribute to the Large Gender Disparity in the Morbidity and Mortality of Patients Infected With the SARS-CoV-2 Virus?
Front Cell Infect Microbiol
; 10: 327, 2020.
Article
in English
| MEDLINE | ID: covidwho-615468
ABSTRACT
COVID-19 morbidity and mortality have significant gender disparities, with higher prevalence and mortality in men. SARS-CoV-2 enters the lungs through the ACE2 enzyme, a member of the renin-angiotensin system (RAS). Although there are no data for the lung, the expressions of RAS components in other tissues are modulated by sex hormones, androgens, and estrogens. However, there are no data on sex-specific differences in ACE2 expression. If there is a sex difference in the expression of ACE2 in the lung, this could theoretically explain the gender disparity in COVID-19 disease. More importantly, although modulation of ACE2 will certainly not provide a cure for the COVID-19 disease, modulation of ACE2 by sex hormone modulators, if they affect the expression of ACE2, could potentially be developed into a supportive therapy for COVID-19 patients.
Keywords
Full text:
Available
Collection:
International databases
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
Pneumonia, Viral
/
Coronavirus Infections
/
Peptidyl-Dipeptidase A
Type of study:
Observational study
/
Prognostic study
Limits:
Female
/
Humans
/
Male
Language:
English
Journal:
Front Cell Infect Microbiol
Year:
2020
Document Type:
Article
Affiliation country:
Fcimb.2020.00327
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