TY - JOUR AU - Conway, Sarah E. AU - Roy-O’Reilly, Meaghan AU - Friedler, Brett AU - Staff, Ilene AU - Fortunato, Gilbert AU - McCullough, Louise D. PY - 2015 DA - 2015/10/12 TI - Sex differences and the role of IL-10 in ischemic stroke recovery JO - Biology of Sex Differences SP - 17 VL - 6 IS - 1 AB - Females experience poorer recovery after ischemic stroke compared to males, even after controlling for age and stroke severity. IL-10 is an anti-inflammatory cytokine produced by T regulatory cells and Th2 CD4+ helper T cells. In ischemic stroke, an excessive IL-10 response contributes to post-stroke immunosuppression, which worsens outcomes. However, it is unknown if sex differences exist in IL-10 levels after ischemic stroke. In this study, we found that higher levels of IL-10 were associated with poor acute and long-term outcomes after ischemic stroke in female patients but not in males. After controlling for confounders, IL-10 was not an independent predictor of functional outcomes. This suggests that higher serum IL-10 levels may reflect factors that interact with sex such as age and stroke severity. SN - 2042-6410 UR - https://doi.org/10.1186/s13293-015-0035-9 DO - 10.1186/s13293-015-0035-9 ID - Conway2015 ER -