Quantitative and qualitative changes in the immune system during ageing
article
A review of the present knowledge of the effect of age on the humoral immune response of mice is presented. It is shown that the capacity to mount an antibody response decreases with age, especially when the immune system is challenged for the first time by low doses of antigen, and when T cells are required for the response. Literature data are presented indicating that the decline is not accompanied by quantitative changes in the number of stem cells or the overall number of B and T cells. The impaired immunocompetence may rather be attributed to alterations in the helper and suppressor T cell functions with age in addition to changes in B cell functions later in life.
TNO Identifier
228448
ISSN
03781186
Source
Nederlands Tijdschrift voor Gerontologie, 9(4), pp. 210-215.
Pages
210-215