Premium
CD4 + CD8 + T cells in young and elderly humans. Comment on Macchia I, Gauduin MC, Kaur A, Johnson RP. Expression of CD8α identifies a distinct subset of effector memory CD4 + T lymphocytes. Immunology 2006; 119:232–42
Author(s) -
HerndlerBrandstetter Dietmar,
Schwanninger Angelika,
GrubeckLoebenstein Beatrix
Publication year - 2007
Publication title -
immunology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.297
H-Index - 133
eISSN - 1365-2567
pISSN - 0019-2805
DOI - 10.1111/j.1365-2567.2006.02542.x
Subject(s) - cd8 , phenotype , biology , cytotoxic t cell , population , microbiology and biotechnology , immunology , genetics , in vitro , medicine , gene , immune system , environmental health
Summary Peripheral CD4 + CD8 + T cells have been described in animals as well as in humans. Two distinct populations can be distinguished, namely CD4 lo CD8 hi and CD4 hi CD8 lo T cells. We demonstrate here that the increase in the number of peripheral CD4 + CD8 + T cells in the elderly is the result of an increase of the CD4 lo CD8 hi T‐cell population. While the phenotype of CD4 lo CD8 hi and CD4 hi CD8 lo T cells was very similar in young persons, CD4 hi CD8 lo , T cells from elderly subjects expressed a more differentiated phenotype and produced less interleukin‐2 compared to CD4 lo CD8 hi T cells. In conclusion, our results suggest that aging leads to a phenotypic and functional difference between CD4 + CD8 + T‐cell subsets. It may therefore be of relevance to distinguish between these subsets before assessing their functional significance in elderly humans.