CD28 downregulation on CD4+ T cells is associated with age of kidney transplant recipient

There is a growing body of evidence showing that the intensity of rejection is weaker in older kidney allograft recipients while chronic complications, but not rejection, are the main causes of graft loss. To investigate whether the age of the recipient is a factor affecting the expressions of the CD28, CTLA-4, and CD40L costimulatory molecules on CD4+ T cells. Their expression levels were determined in 78 kidney transplant recipients aged 17-68 years. The expression was assessed on unstimulated and anti-CD3 antibody + IL-2-stimulated CD4+ T cells. Median time after transplantation was 20 months and median serum creatinine was 1.5 mg/dl. Significant correlations between age and CD28 expression (r = -0.4, P = 0.0004) on CD4+ T cells and between age and CTLA-4 expression after stimulation (r = 0.34, P = 0.008) were found. CD40L expression on CD4+ T cells was not affected by recipient age. The decreased expression of CD28 and enhanced expression of CTLA-4 (after stimulation) associated with age may be helpful in transplant acceptance.