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
- 1 March 2007
- journal article
- editorial
- Published by Wiley in Immunology
- Vol. 120 (3) , 292-294
- https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2567.2006.02542.x
Abstract
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.Keywords
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