Immunity and the Endocrine System

The immune system is highly receptive to endocrine signals due to the expression of hormone receptors on immune cells. The impact of this immune–endocrine cross talk and related immune responses becomes clearly evident when assessing immunity from a sex-specific perspective. We here describe the effect of hormones, primarily sex- and stress-related steroid hormones, on cells of the innate and adaptive immune system in men and women. We specify how these effects are operational throughout the life span and also during periods of dramatic hormonal changes, such as pregnancy.