Special Needs & Medical Study ✓ Peer reviewed

The Ontogeny of Mouse Salivary Gland Macrophages Is Distinct between Sexes

Journal of Dental Research · Q. Zhao, S. Pan, J. Jaiswal, L. Zhang, L.-T. Wang, E. Chang, A. Shahsavari, Y. Zhang, V. Yu, R. Zheng, T. Chen, F. Liu · 2026-02-12

Researchers compared how macrophages develop differently in male and female mouse salivary glands, finding females maintain more short-lived macrophages continuously replenished from circulating cells, while males retain longer-lasting macrophages from early developmental sources. Female salivary glands showed higher levels of inflammatory markers and immune cells, potentially relevant to understanding Sjögren's disease prevalence in women.

A plain-English summary of the study's own findings — we don't add our own claims or interpretation. Read the full paper for the complete methods and results, and apply your own clinical judgement.

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