Figure 3.

Microbial diversity, sex hormones and chromosomes in obesity. Differences in sex-based characteristics are modulated by a variety of factors. Women have a greater degree of subcutaneous fat, whereas males predominantly accumulate visceral fat. In obesity, the shift in the Firmicutes: Bacteroidetes determines disease severity. Obese males have less species richness, and testosterone was found to be associated with increased Firmicutes, thus more anti-inflammatory butyrate release. Obese females, on the other hand, despite having greater microbial diversity, have an increase estradiol and Bacteroidetes, resulting in greater LPS release, thus eliciting a greater immune response. Created with BioRender.com.