Normal lymphocyte immunophenotype in an elderly population
Sâmia Macedo Queiroz Mota Castellão Tavares1, Wilame de Lima Bravo Junior2, Metton Ribeiro Lopes E Silva2
1Faculdade Leão Sampaio (FALS), Juazeiro do Norte, CE, Brazil.
Objective:
The aim of this work was to evaluate the lymphocyte immunophenotype in an elderly population.
Methods:
This study enrolled 35 over 60-year-old volunteers and a control group composed of 35 young adults. The study included elderly without diseases that might affect the functioning of the immune system. These individuals were consulted by doctors and after a physical examination, laboratory tests were performed using a Beckman Coulter(®) flow cytometer. The GraphPad Prism computer program was employed for statistical analysis with the level of significance being set for p-values <0.05.
Results:
There is a statistically significant reduction in the number of lymphocytes (CD8(+), CD2(+) and CD3(+) cells) in the elderly compared to young adults. These low rates are explained by changes attributed to aging and may be partly responsible for the reduction in the cellular immune response, lower proliferative activity and the low cytotoxicity of lymphocytes.
Conclusion:
These parameters showed greater impairment of adaptive immunity in the elderly population and can therefore explain the greater fragility of the aged body to developing diseases.
Related Concept Videos
Lymphoid Cells and Tissues
Lymphoid cells consist of various types of immune system cells. These include B and T lymphocytes, which are responsible for producing antibodies and killing infected cells, respectively. Dendritic cells act as messengers between the innate and adaptive...
Primary Lymphoid Organs
The red bone marrow is a soft, spongy tissue nestled in the interior of long bones such as the humerus and femur. It is the site...
Cells of the Adaptive Immune Response


