Researchers at Oregon Health & Science University have uncovered new information about the body's immune system in a study that suggests new strategies may be in order for protecting the country's aging population against disease.
The research is published in the current edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Science.
The research focused on an important component of the body's immune system, a certain type of white blood cell called naïve T-cells. These cells are called naive because they have no experience of encountering germs. However, once they encounter germs, they learn and adapt to become strong defenders of the organism. The cells play an important role in the vaccination process because vaccines, which contain either weakened or dead viruses, teach naïve T-cells how to recognize germs and prepare the body for fighting infectious diseases at a later date. Previous research shows that an individual's supply of naïve T-cells diminishes over their lifetime, meaning that in old age a person is more susceptible to infections such as the flu.
“Our research identified one actual process by which naïve T-cells are lost later in life,” explained Janko Nikolich-Zugich, Ph.D., a senior scientist at the OHSU Vaccine and Gene Therapy Institute and the Oregon National Primate Research Center and a professor of molecular microbiology and immunology in the OHSU School of Medicine.