T cell subset-specific susceptibility to aging

Czesnikiewicz-Guzik, M. , Lee, W.-W., Cui, D., Hiruma, Y., Lamar, D.L., Yang, Z.-Z., Ouslander, J.G., Weyand, C.M. and Goronzy, J.J. (2008) T cell subset-specific susceptibility to aging. Clinical Immunology, 127(1), pp. 107-118. (doi: 10.1016/j.clim.2007.12.002)

Abstract

With increasing age, the competence of the immune system to fight infections and tumors declines. Age-dependent changes have been mostly described for human CD8 T cells, raising the question of whether the response patterns for CD4 T cells are different. Gene expression arrays of memory CD4 T cells yielded a similar age-induced fingerprint as has been described for CD8 T cells. In cross-sectional studies, the phenotypic changes were not qualitatively different for CD4 and CD8 T cells, but occurred much more frequently in CD8 T cells. Homeostatic stability partially explained this lesser age sensitivity of CD4 T cells. With aging, naïve and central memory CD8 T cells were lost at the expense of phenotypically distinct CD8 effector T cells, while effector CD4 T cells did not accumulate. However, phenotypic shifts on central memory T cells were also more pronounced in CD8 T cells. This distinct stability in cell surface marker expression can be reproduced in vitro. The data show that CD8 T cells are age sensitive by at least two partially independent mechanisms: fragile homeostatic control and gene expression instability in a large set of regulatory cell surface molecules.

• Item Type: Articles
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Czesnikiewicz-Guzik, Dr Marta
• Authors: Czesnikiewicz-Guzik, M., Lee, W.-W., Cui, D., Hiruma, Y., Lamar, D.L., Yang, Z.-Z., Ouslander, J.G., Weyand, C.M., and Goronzy, J.J.
• College/School: College of Medical Veterinary and Life Sciences > School of Medicine, Dentistry & Nursing > Dental School
• Journal Name: Clinical Immunology
• ISSN: 1521-6616
• ISSN (Online): 1521-7035