Brain research bulletin · 2 authors, 1 centre
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This narrative review synthesizes evidence on sex differences in innate and adaptive immune function that may contribute to the higher prevalence of depression in women. It concludes that no single immune mechanism drives depression and proposes a systems-level, sex-aware approach to future research.
This narrative review examines sex differences in immune mechanisms relevant to major depressive disorder. The authors describe that women exhibit a more sensitive innate and adaptive immune system than men, with sex differences in pattern recognition receptors, damage-associated molecular patterns, cell populations, and circulating cytokines. The authors conclude that no single cytokine or immune cell accounts for depression and instead advocate for a systems-level approach that integrates sterile and nonsterile inflammation cycles, considers sex as a biological variable, and maps immune alterations to specific depressive symptoms rather than the disease as a whole.
