{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,5]],"date-time":"2026-05-05T14:55:32Z","timestamp":1777992932501,"version":"3.51.4"},"reference-count":51,"publisher":"American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene","issue":"2","content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":[],"published-print":{"date-parts":[[2013,2,6]]},"abstract":"<jats:p>Sex-based-differences are known to affect susceptibility to protozoan infections, but their effects on parasitemia and clinical symptoms in <jats:italic>Babesia<\/jats:italic> infections remain unclear. We examined the sex-based susceptibility of various mouse strains to <jats:italic>Babesia microti<\/jats:italic> Munich strain infection. In all strains, male mice exhibited significantly higher peak parasitemia and more severe anemia than female mice. Testosterone and estradiol-17\u03b2 treatment caused an increase in parasitemia and aggravation of anemia. Orchidectomized male mice receiving testosterone exhibited smaller splenic macrophage populations three days after infection, smaller B cell populations 10 days after infection, and reduced splenic tumor necrosis factor-\u03b1 and interferon-\u03b3 mRNA expression than mice that did not receive testosterone. Mice receiving estradiol-17\u03b2 did not exhibit immunosuppressive effects. Thus, a weakened and delayed innate immunity response may lead to acquired immunity failure. The results suggested that testosterone directly affects T or B cells, leading to delayed acquired immunity, dramatically increased parasitemia, and severe anemia.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.4269\/ajtmh.2012.12-0338","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2012,12,19]],"date-time":"2012-12-19T03:06:34Z","timestamp":1355886394000},"page":"367-375","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":20,"title":["Effect of Sex Steroids on Babesia microti Infection in Mice"],"prefix":"10.4269","volume":"88","author":[{"given":"Mizuki","family":"Sasaki","sequence":"first","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Yoshito","family":"Fujii","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Maya","family":"Iwamoto","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Hiromi","family":"Ikadai","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]}],"member":"2795","reference":[{"key":"R1","series-title":"Ann N Y Acad Sci","first-page":"158","article-title":"Retrospective study (1998\u20132001) on canine babesiosis in Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil","volume":"1026","author":"Bastos","year":"2004"},{"key":"R2","series-title":"Parasitol Res","first-page":"638","article-title":"Seroprevalence of canine babesiosis in Hungary suggesting breed 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