Source EurekAlert:
Guardian molecule induced by testosterone reverses harmful immune response, eliminates disease symptoms in female mice.
Discovery in males leads to new target for MS therapy for womenWomen have three-to-four times the incidence of MS than menTestosterone-induced molecule appears to explain why men are protected’This is why it’s vital to study sex differences in research’
CHICAGO — Men are much less likely to get multiple sclerosis (MS) than women and one reason is that they are protected by high levels of testosterone.
Scientists have now discovered how it works. Using a mouse model of MS, they have identified a guardian molecule — triggered by testosterone — that appears to protect males from disease. When female mice with disease are treated with this protective molecule, their symptoms were eliminated, reports a new study from Northwestern Medicine. Read on.