Sex-specific transcriptional differences between non-treated male and female human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVEC)

Significant sex differences exist in cardiovascular diseases. It is largely unknown whether sexually dimorphic gene expression plays a role, and whether cells themselves show intrinsic sex differences. We therefore performed whole genome expression analyses in human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVEC) from five sample pools with equal amounts of four individual RNAs from either male or female donors (altogether 20 male and 20 female donors) and compared levels of gene transcription between the sexes. Genes indicative for greater immune responsiveness were stronger expressed in female compared to male HUVEC. There was a significant enrichment of 77 immune-related genes in female HUVEC. RNA derived from HUVEC of 20 male and 20 female donors were used. Five sample pools with equal amounts of four individual RNAs from either male or female HUVEC were generated.