Immune cells are essential for our survival, but they can deteriorate and attack healthy cells.
Katerina Conn/Science Photo Library
As women age, they produce more “killer” immune cells that hunt down and destroy infected cells. This finding, and the fact that the same is not true for men, may help explain why women have higher rates of autoimmune diseases, even though they are less likely to get infections. .
We already know that women tend to have stronger immune systems than men, but research tends to focus on men or male animals, so we lack a detailed understanding of…
