Age not factor in immunity to viruses
Our immune system does not shut down with age, says a new study led by Canadian researchers. A study published in PLOS Pathogens showed a specialised class of immune cells, known as T cells, could respond to virus infections in an older person with the same vigour as T cells from a young person.
Our immune system does not shut down with age, says a new study led by Canadian researchers.
A study published in PLOS Pathogens showed a specialised class of immune cells, known as T cells, could respond to virus infections in an older person with the same vigour as T cells from a young person.
“For a long time, it was thought the elderly were at a higher risk of infections because they lacked these immune cells, but that simply isn’t the case,” said Jonathan Bramson, the study’s principal investigator, at McMaster University.
“The elderly are certainly capable of developing immunity to viruses,” he added.
Researchers at McMaster, University of Toronto and the University of Pennsylvania examined individuals, younger than 40 years, between 41 to 59 years of age and older than 60, infected with three different viruses, and found the older group demonstrated perfectly normal immune responses.
Both the number of virus fighting T cells and the functionality of the T cells were equivalent in all three groups.
“So as we age, our bodies are still able to respond to new viruses, while keeping us immune to viruses we’ve been exposed to in the past,” Mr Bramson said.
He added the results had important implications for vaccination of elderly individuals.
Vaccines for the elderly are not designed to elicit responses from these immune cells, and might explain the lack of effective protection from the flu vaccine. Vaccines specifically designed to generate T cell immunity may be more effective at protecting older adults, he added.
