ReviewNew microbes and new infections2025
Disparities in response to mRNA SARS-CoV-2 vaccines according to sex and age: A systematic review.
Review in New microbes and new infections, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 8 papers.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
8 citing papers in PubMed.
- HIV-1 envelope trimer vaccine induces sex-associated differences in antibody responses: a phase 1 clinical trial.Nature communications · 2025Trial
- mRNA COVID-19 vaccination induces minimal IgA in saliva in the absence of prior clinical or subclinical infection.Vaccine · 2026Article
- Immunosenescence and cytomegalovirus-associated immune signatures on severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 booster responses.The journals of gerontology. Series A, Biological sciences and medical sciences · 2026Article
- Sex differences in vaccine-induced immunity in mice immunized with integrase-defective lentiviral vector delivering the SARS-CoV-2 Spike protein.Frontiers in immunology · 2026Article
- Quantification of the IgG antibody response half-life for hybrid immunity to SARS-CoV-2.BMC medicine · 2025Article
- Profile of Selected MicroRNAs as Markers of Sex-Specific Anti-S/RBD Response to COVID-19 mRNA Vaccine in Health Care Workers.International journal of molecular sciences · 2025Article
- Article
- A genome-wide association study identifies new loci associated with response to SARS-CoV-2 mRNA-1273 vaccine in a cohort of healthy healthcare workers.Frontiers in immunology · 2025Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
6 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Background: The rapid development and distribution of mRNA COVID-19 vaccines has been essential in containing the SARS-CoV-2 epidemic around the globe. For ongoing and future immunization campaigns globally, there is a need to evaluate the impact of population demographics such as age and sex, on vaccine efficacy and safety. Methods: This systematic review (PROSPERO ID CRD42023328245) conducted according to PRISMA guidelines evaluates the impact of age and sex on the safety and efficacy of the mRNA COVID-19 vaccinations administrated in 15 studies that were chosen according to strict criteria. The ROBIS tool was applied to evaluate the robustness and the quality of the studies included in the review. Results: After screening, 15 studies satisfied the inclusion criteria. The results showed that the COVID-19 mRNA vaccines typically elicit robust immune responses, and that younger people have higher antibody levels. Comparing the sexes reveals that higher immunological responses were induced in females, and mild to moderate adverse effects (such as injection site discomfort, exhaustion, and headaches) were also more frequently reported in women. Despite these variations, COVID-19 vaccines have been found to be safe to use across diverse populations, which supports their extensive use in public health initiatives. Conclusion: Our results suggests that tailored vaccination may achieve maximum effectiveness and better tolerability depending on age and sex. Currently study results are rarely stratified by age and sex and this is a deficit in clinical trial publications. More research is needed to elucidate the biological mechanisms underlying the variations in vaccine responses according to age and sex.
Identifiers
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.