Sex Differences: A Resultant of an Evolutionary Pressure?

Publication date: Available online 9 February 2017
Source:Cell Metabolism
Author(s): Sara Della Torre, Adriana Maggi
Spurred by current research policy, we are witnessing a significant growth in the number of studies that observe and describe sexual diversities in human physiology and sex prevalence in a large number of pathologies. Yet we are far from the comprehension of the mechanisms underpinning these differences, which are the result of a long evolutionary history. This Essay is meant to underline female reproductive function as a driver for the positive selection of the specific physiological features that explain male and female differential susceptibility to diseases and metabolic disturbances, in particular. A clear understanding of the causes underlying sexual dimorphisms in the physio-pathology is crucial for precision medicine.

Teaser

A growing number of studies describe sexual differences in human physiology and sex prevalence in many diseases, though the mechanisms underpinning these differences remain unclear. In this Essay, Della Torre and Maggi point to female reproductive functions as the main cause for this metabolic drift during evolution.


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