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Cited by 3Sex and Gender in HealthcareImmune responses and vaccinationsT-cell and B-cell Immunology

The problem with one-size-fits-all medicine: biological sex and the aging immune system

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Baker, Clayton, Ansere, Victor A., Sanqui, Cossette I., Benayoun, Bérénice A.·2026·PLOS Biology
DOI 10.1371/journal.pbio.3003763PMC PMC13160322
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Abstract

Aging has effects on the immune system that are similar in men and women, but also reshapes their immune systems in unique, sex-specific ways. These sex-specific patterns of immune aging influence disease susceptibility, vaccine effectiveness, cancer survival, and responses to pharmacological therapies, and have direct implications for preventive medicine and clinical care. However, these differences in susceptibilities and responses are rarely considered in research, clinical trials, or treatment guidelines. By integrating knowledge of sex-specific immune aging with real-world outcomes from vaccines, cancer immunotherapy, and pharmacovigilance studies, this Essay argues that accounting for both sex and age is essential to advance personalized medicine.

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  • Underappreciated differences among study populations and environmental variables may still contribute to failures of replication.

    “Additionally, underappreciated differences among study populations and environmental variables may still contribute to failures of replication [6].”

    From A feature and not a bug: Replication failures can lead to new biology (2026) · cites this paper as [6]

    In “Implications for research and medicine” (page unavailable), the paper says that failing to account for sex limits how findings can be generalized. Its Conclusions (page unavailable) say that culture conditions affect outcomes and that sex- and age-informed study designs make findings more reproducible. It does not directly state that differences among study populations and environmental variables cause failures of replication. (LLM, conf=0.76)

    Experimental — accuracy not yet measured

  • A third confound can result from averaging across populations of seemingly similar individuals who nonetheless are different in one or more important characteristics.

    “A third confound can result from averaging across populations of seemingly similar individuals who nonetheless are different in one or more important characteristics [6].”

    From A feature and not a bug: Replication failures can lead to new biology (2026) · cites this paper as [6]

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Cited by

Sorted by citations

Authors
Baker, C., Ansere, V. A., Sanqui, C. I., & Benayoun, B. A.
Affiliations
University of Southern California (US)
Corresponding author
Benayoun, Bérénice A.
ORCID
Venue
PLOS Biology
Publisher
Public Library of Science (PLoS)
Published
2026-05-11
Volume
24
Issue
5
Pages
e3003763
ISSN
  • 1544-9173 (ISSN-L)
  • 1545-7885
DOI
10.1371/journal.pbio.3003763
PMC
PMC13160322
OpenAlex
W7160856954
Cited by
3
References
6
Citations by year
2026: 3
FWCI
15.20
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
Locations
  • PLoS Biology (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion)
Funders
  • AthenaDAO (Student Leader Award)
  • National Institute on Aging (K00 AG079813, R01 AG076433)
  • National Institute of General Medical Sciences (R35 GM142395)
  • Simons Foundation (SF811217)
  • Hevolution Foundation (HF-GRO-23-1199072-28)
Topics
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health › Sex and Gender in Healthcare
  • Life Sciences › Immunology and Microbiology › Immunology › Immune responses and vaccinations
  • Life Sciences › Immunology and Microbiology › Immunology › T-cell and B-cell Immunology
Keywords
immunosenescence, sex differences, personalized medicine, vaccine effectiveness, cancer immunotherapy, pharmacovigilance, disease susceptibility, clinical trial design
MeSH terms
Aging, Animals, Disease Susceptibility, Female, Humans, Immune System, Immunotherapy, Male, Neoplasms, Sex Characteristics, Sex Factors, Precision Medicine

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