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Sex differences in COVID-19

About the series

Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2019 it has become clear that there are sex differences in disease susceptibility and progression. Males are more susceptible to severe COVID-19 diseases and post-infectious or post-vaccine myocarditis, and females suffer from a higher risk for long COVID syndrome. Diseases unique to women, such as Polycystic ovary Syndrome, increase the risk for COVID-19 infection. COVID-19 during pregnancy is strongly associated with preeclampsia and poor outcomes.

We welcome submissions of original articles and reviews on preclinical and clinical research in which findings of new sex differences in COVID-19 are reported. We are particularly interested in studies in which potential mechanisms are tested.

Guest Editor: Licy L Yanes Cardozo

  1. Following years of pandemic severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 infections labelled Covid-19, long lasting impairment summarized as post-Covid syndrome (PCS) challenges worldwide healthcare. Patien...

    Authors: Alexander Kautzky, Stephan Nopp, Dietlinde Gattinger, Milos Petrovic, Martin Antlinger, Dustin Schomacker, Alexandra Kautzky-Willer and Ralf Harun Zwick
    Citation: Biology of Sex Differences 2024 15:36
    Content type: Research Published on:

  2. Although biological males and females are equally likely to become infected with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), evidence has mounted that males experience higher severity and fat...

    Authors: Cosby G. Arnold, Anne Libby, Alexis Vest, Andrew Hopkinson and Andrew A. Monte
    Citation: Biology of Sex Differences 2022 13:7
    Content type: Review Published on:

  3. Sex differences in COVID-19 are increasingly recognized globally. Although infection rates are similar between the sexes, men have more severe illness. The mechanism underlying these sex differences is unknown...

    Authors: Shaohua Qi, Conelius Ngwa, Diego A. Morales Scheihing, Abdullah Al Mamun, Hilda W. Ahnstedt, Carson E. Finger, Gabriela Delevati Colpo, Romana Sharmeen, Youngran Kim, HuiMahn A. Choi, Louise D. McCullough and Fudong Liu
    Citation: Biology of Sex Differences 2021 12:66
    Content type: Research Published on:

  4. Several biomarkers have been identified to predict the outcome of COVID-19 severity, but few data are available regarding sex differences in their predictive role. Aim of this study was to identify sex-specifi...

    Authors: Maria Teresa Pagano, Daniela Peruzzu, Luca Busani, Marina Pierdominici, Anna Ruggieri, Andrea Antinori, Gianpiero D’Offizi, Nicola Petrosillo, Fabrizio Palmieri, Pierluca Piselli, Stefania Cicalini, Stefania Notari, Emanuele Nicastri, Chiara Agrati, Giuseppe Ippolito, Francesco Vaia…
    Citation: Biology of Sex Differences 2021 12:63
    Content type: Research Published on:

  5. Authors: Virginia Quaresima, Cristina Scarpazza, Alessandra Sottini, Chiara Fiorini, Simona Signorini, Ottavia Maria Delmonte, Liana Signorini, Eugenia Quiros-Roldan and Luisa Imberti
    Citation: Biology of Sex Differences 2021 12:48
    Content type: Correction Published on:

    The original article was published in Biology of Sex Differences 2021 12:45

  6. Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) severity seems to be influenced by genetic background, sex, age, and presence of specific comorbidities. So far, little attention has been paid to sex-specific variations of...

    Authors: Virginia Quaresima, Cristina Scarpazza, Alessandra Sottini, Chiara Fiorini, Simona Signorini, Ottavia Maria Delmonte, Liana Signorini, Eugenia Quiros-Roldan and Luisa Imberti
    Citation: Biology of Sex Differences 2021 12:45
    Content type: Research Published on:

    The Correction to this article has been published in Biology of Sex Differences 2021 12:48

  7. Determine if sex differences exist in clinical characteristics and outcomes of adults hospitalized for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in a US healthcare system.

    Authors: Yilin Yoshida, Scott A. Gillet, Margo I. Brown, Yuanhao Zu, Sarah M. Wilson, Sabreen J. Ahmed, Saritha Tirumalasetty, Dragana Lovre, Marie Krousel-Wood, Joshua L. Denson and Franck Mauvais-Jarvis
    Citation: Biology of Sex Differences 2021 12:20
    Content type: Research Published on:

  9. Among the unknowns posed by the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak, the role of biological sex to explain disease susceptibility and progression is still a matter of debate, with limited sex-disaggre...

    Authors: Valeria Raparelli, Luigi Palmieri, Marco Canevelli, Flavia Pricci, Brigid Unim, Cinzia Lo Noce, Emanuele R. Villani, Paula A. Rochon, Louise Pilote, Nicola Vanacore and Graziano Onder
    Citation: Biology of Sex Differences 2020 11:57
    Content type: Research Published on:

  12. Emerging evidence from China suggests that coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is deadlier for infected men than women with a 2.8% fatality rate being reported in Chinese men versus 1.7% in women. Further, sex...

    Authors: Catherine Gebhard, Vera Regitz-Zagrosek, Hannelore K. Neuhauser, Rosemary Morgan and Sabra L. Klein
    Citation: Biology of Sex Differences 2020 11:29
    Content type: Review Published on: