Gender Diffferences after Lps-Induced Chorioamnionitis in Fetal Sheep

Background and aims: Several studies have demonstrated survival advantage for female preterm infants. However the reason for this phenomenon is not completely understood. It is well known that lung development, an important determinant of survival of preterm infants, is gender specific and that an exposure to intra-amniotic infection improves lung volumes. We hypothesized that female fetuses would have improved lung maturational responses to chorioamnionitis compared to males.