Sex-specific transcriptional regulation in lung macrophages during sub-acute <i>Mycobacterium tuberculosis</i> infection.

ABSTRACT: Biological sex significantly influences susceptibility to tuberculosis (TB), with males typically experiencing a greater disease burden than females. However, the mechanisms underlying sex-specific immune regulation during TB pathogenesis remain incompletely understood. In this study, we examined sex-based differences in pulmonary immune cell composition, inflammatory signaling pathways, and macrophage transcriptomic responses in C57BL/6 mice infected with the Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) HN878 strain during the sub-acute stage of infection. Our results show that female mice had significantly lower pulmonary Mtb burdens and enhanced protein kinase B (AKT)-interferon gamma (IFN-γ) signaling, which is associated with autophagy, lysosomal activation, and effective int

SUBMITTER: Dhanyalayam D 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12671073 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature