Why autoimmune disease is more common in women: X chromosome holds clues
Rogue antibodies are drawn to the protein–RNA coating on half of the X chromosomes in an XX cell.
Why are women so much more susceptible to autoimmune diseases than men? A new explanation for the discrepancy has emerged: a molecular coating typically found on half of a woman’s X chromosomes — but not in males’ cells — might be provoking unwanted immune responses.
The coating, a mix of RNA and proteins, is central to a developmental process called X-chromosome inactivation. Researchers had previously implicated sex hormones and flawed gene regulation on the X chromosome as drivers of the autoimmune disparity. But the discovery that proteins central to X-chromosome inactivation can themselves set off immunological alarm bells adds yet another layer of complexity — and could point to new diagnostic and therapeutic opportunities.
“This really adds a new mechanistic twist,” says Laura Carrel, a geneticist at the Pennsylvania State College of Medicine in Hershey.
Continue reading at Nature.
