CMV-Specific T-cell Responses at Older Ages: Broad Responses With a Large Central Memory Component May Be Key to Long-term Survival.

ABSTRACT: Cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection sometimes causes large expansions of CMV-specific T cells, particularly in older people. This is believed to undermine immunity to other pathogens and to accelerate immunosenescence. While multiple different CMV proteins are recognized, most publications on age-related T-cell expansions have focused on dominant target proteins UL83 or UL123, and the T-cell activation marker interferon-γ (IFN-γ). We were concerned that this narrow approach might have skewed our understanding of CMV-specific immunity at older ages. We have, therefore, widened the scope of analysis to include in vitro-induced T-cell responses to 19 frequently recognized CMV proteins in "young" and "older" healthy volunteers and a group of "oldest old" long-term survivors (>85 years of age). Pol

SUBMITTER: Bajwa M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5854018 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature