Sex-Based Differences in Lung Physiology

This book provides an overview of the latest experimental work on sex-based differences in lung function and inflammation. Readers will learn how these differences relate to individual predispositions for the development of lung disease in men and women, and in different stages of their reproductive lives. Further, the book focuses on diseases that predominantly affect women or men, with an emphasis on the physiological mechanisms underlying their pathobiology. In turn, these findings are complemented by chapters on recent studies, which investigate how circulating sex hormone levels impact the lung’s innate immune response to environmental agents and air pollution. The pathogeneses of asthma and viral respiratory infection are also major focus areas. As an outlook, the book also discusses current and future research directions aimed at developing sex-specific therapies for lung disease. To examine these anatomical and physiological differences in the male and female respiratory systems, the authors employ a broad range of methods from molecular and clinical biology. Accordingly, the book will be a fascinating read for physiologists and clinicians alike.