" Man flu " aside , scientists have screw for a while that colds and the grippe may take abigger tollon adult female than piece , even when computer virus storey are the same . Now , newfangled inquiry fromJohns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Healthindicates that man are also more likely to recover quicker from the flu , and it could be because of a particularly produced key protein .
The fact that women incline to have more severe influenza symptom than men was antecedently believed to be make by their higher horizontal surface of lung inflammation during infections . However , a research laboratory test showed that both manly mice and human cells infected with a non - lethal dose ofH1N1showed a higher production of a lung - healing protein calledamphiregulin . Not only did manly mouse recuperate faster but those genetically engineered to lack amphiregulin reclaim at like rate to those of females .
" The novel determination here is that females also have slower tissue - repair during recovery , due to comparatively low output of amphiregulin , " says senior study source Sabra Klein in astatement .
Every year , as much as20 percentof the US population will get the influenza , resulting in an norm of 200,000 hospitalizations and as many as 49,000 deaths . research worker say their work could take to new flu treatments that aim to boost the production of amphiregulin in women .
" We found in that subject field that by increase amphiregulin production in females we could expedite their recovery from flu , " said Klein .
Of course , the study was conducted on micenotmen , and only human cellular telephone . While both male and female mice had standardized levels that clear out in about the same time , female meet a “ greater loss of torso wad and dandy lung inflammation ” and were slower to recover .
Why amphiregulin , which is recognise to upgrade epithelial cells in the skin and lung , increases in men when they are in the recovery phase of the flu is still a whodunit ; researchers initially trust it could be because of testosterone spirit level , but find out the sexual activity hormone does n’t control amphiregulin levels . They hope to now inquire how testosterone might ply a “ protective force ” , as well as other factors that could advance amphiregulin output .
The study was write in theBiology of Sex Differences .