Golden Syrian Hamsters as a Model for Revisiting the Role of Biological Sex Differences in SARS-CoV-2 Infection

• Published in: mBio Vol. 12; no. 6; p. e0184821
• Main Authors: Michita, Rafael Tomoya, Mysorekar, Indira U.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States American Society for Microbiology 21.12.2021
• Subjects: Animals; Antibodies, Viral - blood; Commentary; COVID-19; COVID-19 - immunology; COVID-19 - physiopathology; Cricetinae; Disease Models, Animal; Female; Lung - pathology; lung infection; Male; Mesocricetus; Microbial Pathogenesis; SARS-CoV-2; SARS-CoV-2 - immunology; SARS-CoV-2 - pathogenicity; sex difference; Sex Factors; Syrian hamster; viral infections; Viral Load; COVID-19; Syrian hamster; SARS-CoV-2; viral infections; sex difference; lung infection
• ISSN: 2150-7511; 2150-7511
• DOI: 10.1128/mBio.01848-21

There is growing evidence that coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) affects males more severely than females, including compelling evidence indicating that biological sex is an important clinical factor influencing disease pathology and outcomes. In their recent article in mBio , Dhakal et al. find further evidence to support this hypothesis as they interrogate biological sex differences in the pathogenesis and clinical features of COVID-19 in the golden Syrian hamster model. There is growing evidence that coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) affects males more severely than females, including compelling evidence indicating that biological sex is an important clinical factor influencing disease pathology and outcomes. In their recent article in mBio , S. Dhakal, C. A. Ruiz-Bedoya, R. Zhou, P. S. Creisher, et al. (mBio 12:e00974-21, 2021, https://doi.org/10.1128/mBio.00974-21 ) find further evidence to support this hypothesis as they interrogate biological sex differences in the pathogenesis and clinical features of COVID-19 in the golden Syrian hamster model. Their study probes SARS-CoV-2 infection in terms of loss of body mass, recovery, lung compromise, viral replication, inflammatory response, immune response, and, most importantly, the role of estrogen. They also demonstrate the value of a novel unbiased, quantitative chest computed tomography (CT) imaging approach. The golden Syrian hamster model holds a promising opportunity to further investigate how biological sex acts as a primary determinant in SARS-CoV-2 pathogenesis, as also demonstrated in this study.