TABLE 2.
Summary of factors that may be involved in the different response to SARS‐CoV‐2 between sexes
| Gene | Function/role in viral infection | References |
|---|---|---|
| X‐linked | ||
| ACE2 | Antioxidant anti‐inflammatory enzyme‐receptor of Sars‐Covs | Pagliaro and Penna (2005); Cheng et al. (2015); Ghosh and Klein (2017); Márquez et al. (2020) |
| ILs | Cytokines involved in the regulation of the immune response | |
| FOXP3 | Transcription factor involved in the development and function of regulatory T cells | |
| XIST | ||
| TLRs | Receptor involved in pathogen recognition and activation of the innate immunity | |
| CXCR3 | ||
| Y‐linked | ||
| TMPRSS2 | Transmembrane protease promotes cell entrance of coronavirus | Tomlins et al. (2005); Ghosh and Klein (2017); Márquez et al. (2020) |
| SRY | Encodes for proteins involved in the immune response during viral infections | |
| SOX9 | Encodes for proteins involved in the immune response to viral infections | |
| Genes regulated by sexual hormones | Effects | |
| Oestrogens | Setlur et al. (2008); Bukowska et al. (2017); Fagone et al. (2020) | |
| ACE2 | Up‐regulation in several tissues (e.g., lungs and heart) | |
| TMPRSS2 | Fusion of the promoter region of TMPRSS2 gene to the coding region of ERG | |
| DEGs | Up‐regulation of C3 and EDN1 | |
| Down‐regulation of PDK4 and VTCN1 | ||
| Androgens | Tomlins et al. (2005); Fagone et al. (2020) | |
| TMPRSS2 | Up‐regulation in several tissues (e.g., prostate cancer) | |
| DEGs | Up‐regulation of CCL20 and CXCL1 | |
| Down‐regulation of THBD, HEY2, BBOX1, and MYLK |
Abbreviations: BBOX1, γ‐butyrobetaine hydroxylase 1; C3, complement C3; DEGs, differentially expressed genes; EDN1, endothelin 1; ERG, v‐ets erythroblastosis virus E26 oncogene homolog (avian); FOXP3, forkhead box transcription factor; HEY2, hairy/enhancer‐of‐split related with YRPW motif protein; MYLK, myosin light chain kinase; PDK4, pyruvate dehydrogenase lipoamide kinase isozyme 4; SOX9, sex‐determining region Y box 9; SRY, sex‐determining region Y; THBD, thrombomodulin; TLRs, Toll‐like receptors; TMPRSS2, transmembrane protease serine 2; VTCN1, V‐set domain containing T cell activation inhibitor 1; XIST, X inactive specific transcript.