Articles

Changes in peripheral immune cell numbers and functions in octogenarian walkers – an acute exercise study

Age-related changes of the immune system, termed immunosenescence, may underlie the increased risk of infections and morbidity in the elderly. Little is known about the effects of acute exercise on peripheral ...

Authors: Kornelis S. M. van der Geest, Qi Wang, Thijs M. H. Eijsvogels, Hans J. P. Koenen, Irma Joosten, Elisabeth Brouwer, Maria T. E. Hopman, Joannes F. M. Jacobs and Annemieke M. H. Boots

Erratum to: Frailty has a stronger association with inflammation than age in older veterans

Authors: P. Van Epps, D. Oswald, P. A. Higgins, T. R. Hornick, H. Aung, R. E. Banks, B. M. Wilson, C. Burant, S. Gravenstein and D. H. Canaday

Expression of cellular protective proteins SIRT1, HSP70 and SOD2 correlates with age and is significantly higher in NK cells of the oldest seniors

NK cells are key effector lymphocytes of innate immunity provided with constitutive cytolytic activity, however, their role in human ageing is not entirely understood. The study aimed to analyze the expression...

Authors: Lucyna Kaszubowska, Jerzy Foerster, Jan Jacek Kaczor, Daria Schetz, Tomasz Jerzy Ślebioda and Zbigniew Kmieć

Lifewide profile of cytokine production by innate and adaptive immune cells from Brazilian individuals

Immunosenescence is associated with several changes in adaptive and innate immune cells. Altered cytokine production is among the most prominent of these changes. The impact of age-related alterations on cytok...

Authors: Gabriela Silveira-Nunes, Elaine Speziali, Andréa Teixeira-Carvalho, Danielle M. Vitelli-Avelar, Renato Sathler-Avelar, Taciana Figueiredo-Soares, Maria Luiza Silva, Vanessa Peruhype-Magalhães, Daniel Gonçalves Chaves, Gustavo Eustáquio Brito-Melo, Glenda Meira Cardoso, Eric Bassetti Soares, Silvana Maria Elói-Santos, Rosângela Teixeira, Dulciene Magalhães Queiroz, Rodrigo Corrêa-Oliveira…

A pilot observational study on magnesium and calcium imbalance in elderly patients with acute aortic dissection

Magnesium (Mg) and calcium (Ca) are the principal essential elements involved in endothelial cell homeostasis. Extracellular changes in the levels of either alter endothelial contraction and dilatation. Conseq...

Authors: E. Vianello, E. Dozio, A. Barassi, G. Sammarco, L. Tacchini, M. M. Marrocco-Trischitta, S. Trimarchi and M. M. Corsi Romanelli

Frailty has a stronger association with inflammation than age in older veterans

Upregulation of pro-inflammatory cytokines has not only been associated with increased morbidity and mortality in older adults but also has been linked to frailty. In the current study we aimed to compare the ...

Authors: P. Van Epps, D. Oswald, P. A. Higgins, T. R. Hornick, H. Aung, R. E. Banks, B. M. Wilson, C. Burant, S. Gravenstein and D. H. Canaday

Booster vaccination against tetanus and diphtheria: insufficient protection against diphtheria in young and elderly adults

We have recently demonstrated that single shot vaccinations against tetanus and diphtheria do not lead to long-lasting immunity against diphtheria in elderly persons despite administration at 5 year intervals....

Authors: Marco Grasse, Andreas Meryk, Michael Schirmer, Beatrix Grubeck-Loebenstein and Birgit Weinberger

The inflammatory protein Pentraxin 3 in cardiovascular disease

The acute phase protein Pentraxin 3 (PTX3) plays a non-redundant role as a soluble pattern recognition receptor for selected pathogens and it represents a rapid biomarker for primary local activation of innate...

Authors: Francesco Fornai, Albino Carrizzo, Maurizio Forte, Mariateresa Ambrosio, Antonio Damato, Michela Ferrucci, Francesca Biagioni, Carla Busceti, Annibale A. Puca and Carmine Vecchione

Changes in blood lymphocyte numbers with age in vivo and their association with the levels of cytokines/cytokine receptors

Alterations in the number and composition of lymphocytes and their subsets in blood are considered a hallmark of immune system aging. However, it is unknown whether the rates of change of lymphocytes are stabl...

Authors: Yun Lin, Jiewan Kim, E. Jeffrey Metter, Huy Nguyen, Thai Truong, Ana Lustig, Luigi Ferrucci and Nan-ping Weng

Redox modulation of cellular stress response and lipoxin A4 expression by Hericium Erinaceus in rat brain: relevance to Alzheimer’s disease pathogenesis

There has been a recent upsurge of interest in complementary medicine, especially dietary supplements and foods functional in delaying the onset of age-associated neurodegenerative diseases. Mushrooms have lon...

Authors: A. Trovato, R. Siracusa, R. Di Paola, M. Scuto, M. L. Ontario, Ornella Bua, Paola Di Mauro, M. A. Toscano, C. C. T. Petralia, L. Maiolino, A. Serra, S. Cuzzocrea and Vittorio Calabrese

Elastic band resistance training influences transforming growth factor-ß receptor I mRNA expression in peripheral mononuclear cells of institutionalised older adults: the Vienna Active Ageing Study (VAAS)

Ageing, inactivity and obesity are associated with chronic low-grade inflammation contributing to a variety of lifestyle-related diseases. Transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β) is a multimodal protein with vari...

Authors: Barbara Schober-Halper, Marlene Hofmann, Stefan Oesen, Bernhard Franzke, Thomas Wolf, Eva-Maria Strasser, Norbert Bachl, Michael Quittan, Karl-Heinz Wagner and Barbara Wessner

Interleukin-6 and C-reactive protein, successful aging, and mortality: the PolSenior study

In the elderly, chronic low-grade inflammation (inflammaging) is a risk factor for the development of aging-related diseases and frailty. Using data from several thousand Eastern Europeans aged 65 years and ol...

Authors: Monika Puzianowska-Kuźnicka, Magdalena Owczarz, Katarzyna Wieczorowska-Tobis, Pawel Nadrowski, Jerzy Chudek, Przemyslaw Slusarczyk, Anna Skalska, Marta Jonas, Edward Franek and Malgorzata Mossakowska

The prognostic value of biomarkers in stroke

Ischemic injury triggers inflammatory cascades and changes in the protein synthesis, neurotransmitters and neuro-hormones in the brain parenchyma that may further amplify the tissue damage. The “Triage® Stroke...

Authors: Francesco Iemolo, Enzo Sanzaro, Giovanni Duro, Antonello Giordano and Maurizio Paciaroni

Role of androgens in dhea-induced rack1 expression and cytokine modulation in monocytes

Over the past fifteen years, we have demonstrated that cortisol and dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) have opposite effects on the regulation of protein kinase C (PKC) activity in the context of the immune system....

Authors: Emanuela Corsini, Valentina Galbiati, Angela Papale, Elena Kummer, Antonella Pinto, Melania M. Serafini, Antonio Guaita, Roberto Spezzano, Donatella Caruso, Marina Marinovich and Marco Racchi

Nutrigerontology: a key for achieving successful ageing and longevity

During the last two centuries the average lifespan has increased at a rate of approximately 3 months/year in both sexes, hence oldest old people are becoming the population with the fastest growth in Western W...

Authors: Anna Aiello, Giulia Accardi, Giuseppina Candore, Giuseppe Carruba, Sergio Davinelli, Giuseppe Passarino, Giovanni Scapagnini, Sonya Vasto and Calogero Caruso

Effects of thermal water inhalation in chronic upper respiratory tract infections in elderly and young patients

Chronic upper respiratory tract infections (cURTI) are very frequent illnesses which occur at any age of life. In elderly, cURTI are complicated by immunosenescence, with involvement of lung immune responsiven...

Authors: Thea Magrone, Mauro Galantino, Nunzio Di Bitonto, Luisella Borraccino, Gerardo Chiaromonte and Emilio Jirillo

The insulin receptor substrate Chico regulates antibacterial immune function in Drosophila

Molecular and genetic studies in model organisms have recently revealed a dynamic interplay between immunity and ageing mechanisms. In the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster, inhibition of the insulin/insulin-like...

Authors: Sarah McCormack, Shruti Yadav, Upasana Shokal, Eric Kenney, Dustin Cooper and Ioannis Eleftherianos

Dietary phytochemicals and neuro-inflammaging: from mechanistic insights to translational challenges

An extensive literature describes the positive impact of dietary phytochemicals on overall health and longevity. Dietary phytochemicals include a large group of non-nutrients compounds from a wide range of pla...

Authors: Sergio Davinelli, Michael Maes, Graziamaria Corbi, Armando Zarrelli, Donald Craig Willcox and Giovanni Scapagnini

Nutrition, aging and cancer: lessons from dietary intervention studies

There is convincing epidemiological and clinical evidence that, independent of aging, lifestyle and, notably, nutrition are associated with development or progression of major human cancers, including breast, ...

Authors: Giuseppe Carruba, Letizia Cocciadiferro, Antonietta Di Cristina, Orazia M. Granata, Cecilia Dolcemascolo, Ildegarda Campisi, Maurizio Zarcone, Maria Cinquegrani and Adele Traina

β-glucans: ex vivo inflammatory and oxidative stress results after pasta intake

It is well known that Mediterranean Diet can positively influence the health of each individual, in particular it is know that fibers have an important role. However, in Mediterranean cities most people do not...

Authors: Annalisa Barera, Silvio Buscemi, Roberto Monastero, Calogero Caruso, Rosalia Caldarella, Marcello Ciaccio and Sonya Vasto

Nutraceutical effects of table green olives: a pilot study with Nocellara del Belice olives

The aim of this study was to analyse the nutraceutical properties of table green olives Nocellara del Belice, a traditional Mediterranean food. The Mediterranean Diet has as key elements olives and extra virgin o...

Authors: Giulia Accardi, Anna Aiello, Valeria Gargano, Caterina Maria Gambino, Santo Caracappa, Sandra Marineo, Gesualdo Vesco, Ciriaco Carru, Angelo Zinellu, Maurizio Zarcone, Calogero Caruso and Giuseppina Candore

Human longevity: Genetics or Lifestyle? It takes two to tango

Healthy aging and longevity in humans are modulated by a lucky combination of genetic and non-genetic factors. Family studies demonstrated that about 25 % of the variation in human longevity is due to genetic ...

Authors: Giuseppe Passarino, Francesco De Rango and Alberto Montesanto

HCV monoinfection and HIV/HCV coinfection enhance T-cell immune senescence in injecting drug users early during infection

Injecting drug users (IDU) are at premature risk of developing multimorbidity and mortality from causes commonly observed in the elderly. Ageing of the immune system (immune-senescence) can lead to premature m...

Authors: Bart P. X. Grady, Nening M. Nanlohy and Debbie van Baarle

Antibodies to the DNA-directed RNA polymerase II subunit RPB1 occur with highest frequency in centenarians

Recently, phage display technology has made it possible to define the circulating repertoire of humoral immunity. This study was designed to define the circulating antibodies specific to centenarians.

Authors: Jungwon Han, So-Hyun Park, Dong-Jo Kim, Hyori Kim, Yoon-Ho Choi, Jong-Hyuk Lee, Sang Chul Park and Junho Chung

Acute phase of aortic dissection: a pilot study on CD40L, MPO, and MMP-1, -2, 9 and TIMP-1 circulating levels in elderly patients

Acute aortic dissection (AAD) is an event which may be rapidly fatal without early diagnosis and treatment. Aging is one of the main risk factors that could leading to AAD. To date, no specific biomarkers are ...

Authors: E. Vianello, E. Dozio, R. Rigolini, M. M. Marrocco-Trischitta, L. Tacchini, S. Trimarchi and M. M. Corsi Romanelli

TLR-6 SNP P249S is associated with healthy aging in nonsmoking Eastern European Caucasians - A cohort study

To investigate mechanisms that determine healthy aging is of major interest in the modern world marked by longer life expectancies. In addition to lifestyle and environmental factors genetic factors also play ...

Authors: Lutz Hamann, Jasmin Bustami, Leonid Iakoubov, Malgorzata Szwed, Malgorzata Mossakowska, Ralf R. Schumann and Monika Puzianowska-Kuznicka

Effect of a synbiotic on the response to seasonal influenza vaccination is strongly influenced by degree of immunosenescence

Ageing increases risk of respiratory infections and impairs the response to influenza vaccination. Pre- and probiotics offer an opportunity to modulate anti-viral defenses and the response to vaccination via a...

Authors: Agnieszka Przemska-Kosicka, Caroline E. Childs, Sumia Enani, Catherine Maidens, Honglin Dong, Iman Bin Dayel, Kieran Tuohy, Susan Todd, Margot A. Gosney and Parveen Yaqoob

Cellular immune activity biomarker neopterin is associated hyperlipidemia: results from a large population-based study

Increased serum neopterin had been described in older age two decades ago. Neopterin is a biomarker of systemic adaptive immune activation that could be potentially implicated in metabolic syndrome (MetS). Mea...

Authors: Shu-Chun Chuang, Heiner Boeing, Stein Emil Vollset, Øivind Midttun, Per Magne Ueland, Bas Bueno-de-Mesquita, Martin Lajous, Guy Fagherazzi, Marie-Christine Boutron-Ruault, Rudolf Kaaks, Tilman Küehn, Tobias Pischon, Dagmar Drogan, Anne Tjønneland, Kim Overvad, J Ramón Quirós…

Higher plasma levels of complement C3a, C4a and C5a increase the risk of subretinal fibrosis in neovascular age-related macular degeneration

The aim of this study was to investigate the plasma levels of complement C3a, C4a, and C5a in different types of neovascular age-related macular degeneration (nAMD) and whether the levels were related to patie...

Authors: Judith Lechner, Mei Chen, Ruth E. Hogg, Levente Toth, Giuliana Silvestri, Usha Chakravarthy and Heping Xu

Efforts of the human immune system to maintain the peripheral CD8+ T cell compartment after childhood thymectomy

Homeostatic mechanisms to maintain the T cell compartment diversity indicate an ongoing process of thymic activity and peripheral T cell renewal during human life. These processes are expected to be accelerate...

Authors: Manuela Zlamy, Giovanni Almanzar, Walther Parson, Christian Schmidt, Johannes Leierer, Birgit Weinberger, Verena Jeller, Karin Unsinn, Matthias Eyrich, Reinhard Würzner and Martina Prelog

Pneumococcal colonization in older adults

Little is known about pneumococcal carrier states in older adults. The main aim of this study was to evaluate pneumococcal colonization patterns among older adults in two centres in Milan, Italy, before the wi...

Authors: Susanna Esposito, Daniela Mari, Luigi Bergamaschini, Annalisa Orenti, Leonardo Terranova, Luca Ruggiero, Valentina Ierardi, Monia Gambino, Francesco Della Croce and Nicola Principi

Cytomegalovirus viral load within blood increases markedly in healthy people over the age of 70 years

Cytomegalovirus (CMV) is a highly prevalent herpesvirus, which maintains lifelong latency and places a significant burden on host immunity. Infection is associated with increased rates of vascular disease and ...

Authors: Helen M. Parry, Jianmin Zuo, Guido Frumento, Nikhil Mirajkar, Charlotte Inman, Emma Edwards, Mike Griffiths, Guy Pratt and Paul Moss

Fetal thymus graft enables recovery from age-related hearing loss and expansion of CD4-Positive T cells expressing IL-1 receptor type 2 and regulatory T Cells

Accumulating evidence has indicated the relationship between the systemic immune system and the central nervous system including the inner ear.

Authors: Hiroshi Iwai and Muneo Inaba

Serum BPIFB4 levels classify health status in long-living individuals

People that reach extreme ages (Long-Living Individuals, LLIs) are object of intense investigation for increase/decrease of genetic variant frequencies, genetic methylation levels, protein abundance in serum a...

Authors: Francesco Villa, Alberto Malovini, Albino Carrizzo, Chiara C. Spinelli, Anna Ferrario, Anna Maciąg, Michele Madonna, Riccardo Bellazzi, Luciano Milanesi, Carmine Vecchione and Annibale A. Puca

End stage renal disease patients have a skewed T cell receptor Vβ repertoire

End stage renal disease (ESRD) is associated with defective T-cell mediated immunity. A diverse T-cell receptor (TCR) Vβ repertoire is central to effective T-cell mediated immune responses to foreign antigens....

Authors: Ling Huang, Anton W. Langerak, Ingrid L. M. Wolvers-Tettero, Ruud W. J. Meijers, Carla C. Baan, Nicolle H. R. Litjens and Michiel G. H. Betjes

Peripheral blood T-cell signatures from high-resolution immune phenotyping of γδ and αβ T-cells in younger and older subjects in the Berlin Aging Study II

Aging and latent infection with Cytomegalovirus (CMV) are thought to be major factors driving the immune system towards immunosenescence, primarily characterized by reduced amounts of naïve T-cells and increas...

Authors: Kilian Wistuba-Hamprecht, Karin Haehnel, Nicole Janssen, Ilja Demuth and Graham Pawelec

Probiotic strain Bacillus subtilis CU1 stimulates immune system of elderly during common infectious disease period: a randomized, double-blind placebo-controlled study

Bacillus probiotics health benefits have been until now quite poorly studied in the elderly population. This study aimed to assess the effects of Bacillus subtilis CU1 consumption on i...

Authors: Marie Lefevre, Silvia M. Racedo, Gabrielle Ripert, Béatrice Housez, Murielle Cazaubiel, Corinne Maudet, Peter Jüsten, Philippe Marteau and Maria C. Urdaci

Characteristics of spinal microglia in aged and obese mice: potential contributions to impaired sensory behavior

Both aging and obesity have been recognized widely as health conditions that profoundly affect individuals, families and the society. Aged and obese people often report altered pain responses while underlying ...

Authors: SeungHwan Lee, YaSi Wu, Xiang Qun Shi and Ji Zhang

Neo-epitopes emerging in the degenerative hippocampal granules of aged mice can be recognized by natural IgM auto-antibodies

Degenerative granular structures appear progressively with age in the hippocampus of most mouse strains. We recently reported that these granules contain a neo-epitope that is recognised by IgM antibodies pres...

Authors: Gemma Manich, Elisabet Augé, Itsaso Cabezón, Mercè Pallàs, Jordi Vilaplana and Carme Pelegrí

IL7R gene expression network associates with human healthy ageing

The level of expression of the interleukin 7 receptor (IL7R) gene in blood has recently been found to be associated with familial longevity and healthy ageing. IL7R is crucial for T cell development and important...

Authors: Willemijn M. Passtoors, Erik B. van den Akker, Joris Deelen, Andrea B. Maier, Ruud van der Breggen, Rick Jansen, Stella Trompet, Diana van Heemst, Evelyna Derhovanessian, Graham Pawelec, Gert-Jan B. van Ommen, P. Eline Slagboom and Marian Beekman

Heat shock proteins and hormesis in the diagnosis and treatment of neurodegenerative diseases

Modulation of endogenous cellular defense mechanisms via the vitagene system represents an innovative approach to therapeutic intervention in diseases causing chronic tissue damage, such as in neurodegeneratio...

Authors: Sandro Dattilo, Cesare Mancuso, Guido Koverech, Paola Di Mauro, Maria Laura Ontario, Cateno Concetto Petralia, Antonino Petralia, Luigi Maiolino, Agostino Serra, Edward J. Calabrese and Vittorio Calabrese

NLR family pyrin domain containing 3 (NLRP3) inflammasome gene polymorphism rs7512998 (C>T) predicts aging-related increase of blood pressure, the TAMRISK study

The activation of NLR family pyrin domain containing 3 (NLRP3) inflammasome by cellular stress leads to activation of the inflammasome, and NLRP3 gene polymorphisms have been associated with autoinflammatory d...

Authors: Tarja Kunnas, Kirsi Määttä and Seppo T. Nikkari

Decline of FOXN1 gene expression in human thymus correlates with age: possible epigenetic regulation

Thymic involution is thought to be an important factor of age related immunodeficiency. Understanding the molecular mechanisms of human thymic senescence may lead to the discovery of novel therapeutic approach...

Authors: Maria Danielma dos Santos Reis, Krisztian Csomos, Luciene Paschoal Braga Dias, Zsolt Prodan, Tamas Szerafin, Wilson Savino and Laszlo Takacs

Comprehensive circular RNA profiling reveals that circular RNA100783 is involved in chronic CD28-associated CD8(+)T cell ageing

Ageing brings about the gradual deterioration of the immune system, also known as immunosenescence. The role of non-coding circular RNA in immunosenescence is under studied. Using circular RNA microarray data,...

Authors: Yu-hong Wang, Xu-hui Yu, Shan-shun Luo and Hui Han

Aging diminishes the resistance of AO rats to EAE: putative role of enhanced generation of GM-CSF Expressing CD4+ T cells in aged rats

Aging influences immune response and susceptibility to EAE in a strain specific manner. The study was designed to examine influence of aging on EAE induction in Albino Oxford (AO) rats.

Authors: Zorica Stojić-Vukanić, Mirjana Nacka-Aleksić, Ivan Pilipović, Ivana Vujnović, Veljko Blagojević, Duško Kosec, Mirjana Dimitrijević and Gordana Leposavić

Gene expression of inflammasome components in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) of vascular patients increases with age

Chronic low-grade inflammation is considered a driver of many age-related disorders, including vascular diseases (inflammaging). Inhibition of autophagic capacity with ageing was postulated to generate a pro-i...

Authors: Xiaoyu Wu, Maani Hakimi, Markus Wortmann, Jian Zhang, Dittmar Böckler and Susanne Dihlmann

The immunological footprint of CMV in HIV-1 patients stable on long-term ART

Most HIV-infected persons are cytomegalovirus (CMV) seropositive and retain latent virus that can be reactivated by immune activation. Their T cell populations express markers reflecting a late stage of differ...

Authors: Jacquita S. Affandi, Jacinta Montgomery, Samantha J. Brunt, David Nolan and Patricia Price

Erratum to: The effect of aging on the frequency, phenotype and cytokine production of human blood CD4 + CXCR5 + T follicular helper cells: comparison of aged and young subjects

Authors: Maohua Zhou, Ruqiong Zou, Huiquan Gan, Zhimei Liang, Fujun Li, Ting Lin, Yanfei Luo, Xiaoming Cai, Fang He and Erxia Shen

A sustained high fat diet for two years decreases IgM and IL-1 beta in ageing Wistar rats

The immune system undergoes several alterations of innate and adaptive immunity during ageing. The main features of the aged immune system are a reduced diversity of T cell receptors and a reduced activity of ...

Authors: Georg Pongratz, Torsten Lowin, Robert Kob, Roland Buettner, Thomas Bertsch and L. Cornelius Bollheimer

Hormetic effect of rotenone in primary human fibroblasts

Rotenone inhibits the electron transfer from complex I to ubiquinone, in this way interfering with the electron transport chain in mitochondria. This chain of events induces increased levels of intracellular r...

Authors: Shiva Marthandan, Steffen Priebe, Marco Groth, Reinhard Guthke, Matthias Platzer, Peter Hemmerich and Stephan Diekmann