Social effects on age-related and sex-specific immune cell profiles in a wild mammal.

ABSTRACT: Evidence for age-related changes in innate and adaptive immune responses is increasing in wild populations. Such changes have been linked to fitness, and knowledge of the factors driving immune response variation is important for understanding the evolution of immunity. Age-related changes in immune profiles may be owing to factors such as immune system development, sex-specific behaviour and responses to environmental conditions. Social environments may also contribute to variation in immunological responses, for example, through transmission of pathogens and stress arising from resource and mate competition. Yet, the impact of the social environment on age-related changes in immune cell profiles is currently understudied in the wild. Here, we tested the relationship between leukocyte cel

SUBMITTER: van Lieshout SHJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7423055 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature