Departmental Affiliations
Sabra Klein, PhD '98, studies sex differences and the effects of pregnancy on immune responses to viruses, including influenza viruses and SARS-Cov-2, and vaccines.
Contact Info
Research Interests
Molecular Microbiology and Immunology; Androgens; COVID-19; Endocrine-Immune Interactions; Estrogens; Immunology; Infectious Diseases; Influenza; Menopause; Pregnancy; SARS-CoV-2; Sex Differences; Vaccines; Viruses; Women's Health
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Experiences & Accomplishments
The overarching goal of my research program is to uncover the mechanisms mediating how males and females differ in their immune responses to viral infection and vaccination. We hypothesize that sex chromosome complement and X-linked genes as well as sex steroids and signaling through sex steroid receptors are critical pathways modulating immune responses to viruses. We consider how immunological, hormonal, and genetic differences between males and females affect sex differences in susceptibility to viruses, including influenza and SARS-CoV-2 viruses. We also study the mechanisms mediating altered immune responses and infectious disease pathogenesis during pregnancy. Altered immunity against viruses during pregnancy, including at the maternal-fetal interface, can contribute to adverse maternal and fetal outcomes.
Honors & Awards
2023 Vivian Pinn Award for Outstanding Research in Women's Health
2022/2023 Clarivate Analytics Top Cited Researchers
2022 Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science
2022 NIH/NIAID Merit Award
2021 Fellow of the American Academy of Microbiology
2021 Donna Vogel Women's Health Champion Award
2017 Delta Omega Induction
2016 Distinguished Alumni Award, Randolph-Macon College
2010 Society for Women’s Health Research Medtronic Award for Science Contributions
2007 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health Faculty Innovation Fund Award
2002 National Foundation for Infectious Diseases New Investigator Award
Select Publications
This list contains recent publications from the past year, with a majority reflecting the hard work of trainees in the Klein lab.
Hoffman, J.P., Liu, J.A., Sedu, K., & Klein, S.L. 2023. Sex hormone signaling and regulation of immune function. Immunity, 56(11):2472-2491.
Creisher, P.S., Perry, J.L., Zhong, W., Lei, J., Mulka, K., Ryan, H., Zhou, R., Akin, E.H., Liu, A.,, Mitzner, W., Burd, I., Pekosz, A., & Klein, S.L. 2023. Adverse outcomes in SARS-CoV-2 infected pregnant mice are gestational age-dependent band resolve with antiviral treatment. Journal of Clinical Investigations,133(20):e170687.
Shapiro, J.R., Seddu, K., Park, H-S., Creisher, P.S., Li, H., Abrams, E., Leng, S.X., Morgan, R., & Klein, S.L. 2023. The intersection of biological sex and gender in adverse events following high dose seasonal influenza vaccination in older adults. Immunity & Ageing, 20(1):43.
Ursin, R.L., Dhakal, S., Liu, H., Jayaraman, S., Park, H-S., Powell, H.R., Sherer, M., Littlefield, K., Fink, A.L., Ma, Z, Mueller, A., Chen, A.P., Wang, A., Woldetsadik, Y., Gearhart, P.J., Larman, B., Maul, R.W., Pekosz, A., Klein, S.L. 2022. Greater breadth of vaccine-induced immunity in females than males is mediated by increased antibody diversity in germinal center B cells. mBio, doi:10.1128/mbio.01839-22.
Dhakal, S. Ruiz-Bedoya, C., Zhou, R., Cheisher, P.S., Villano, J.S., Littlefield, K., Castillo, J. R., Marinho, P., Jedlicka, A., Ordonez, A.A., Majewski, N., Betenbaugh, M.J., Flavahan, K., Mueller, A.L., Looney, M.M., Quijada, D., Wood, M., Mota, F., Pieterse, L., Metcalf Pate, K.A., Karakousis, P.C., Mankowski, J., Pekosz, A., Jain, S.K., & Klein, S.L. 2021. Sex differences in lung pathology and SARS-CoV-2 antibody responses in golden Syrian hamsters. mBio, 12:e00974-21.
Mauvais-Jarvis, F., Bairey Merz, N., Barnes, P.J., Brinton, R.D., Carrero, J.J., DeMeo, D.L., De Vries, G.J., Epperson, C.N., Govindan, R., Klein, S.L., Lonardo, A., Maki, P.M., McCullough, L.D., Regitz-Zagrosek, V., Regensteiner, J.G., Rubin, J.B., Sandberg, K., & Suzuki, A. 2020. Sex and gender: Modifiers of health, disease and medicine. Lancet, 396, 565-582.