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Age-related changes in blood lymphocyte subsets of Chinese children
1Department of Pediatrics, College of Medicine, National Taiwan University, Taipei, R.O.C.
Insights
Pediatric immune cell populations, including T cells, B cells, and NK cells, undergo significant age-related changes. Understanding these shifts in lymphocyte subsets is crucial for pediatric immunology research.
Area of Science:
- Immunology
- Pediatrics
- Cellular Biology
Background:
- The human cellular immune system exhibits age-related alterations in major lymphocyte populations and their subsets.
- Flow cytometry is a key technique for analyzing these changes in immune cell composition.
Purpose of the Study:
- To characterize the developmental changes in lymphocyte populations and subsets in healthy pediatric subjects.
- To establish reference ranges for immune cell markers in children of various age groups.
Main Methods:
- Immunophenotyping was performed using flow cytometry on 136 healthy pediatric subjects.
- Subjects were categorized into distinct age groups: newborn, 1-2 years, 2-5 years, and 6-15 years.
Main Results:
- T cell percentages increased with age, while B and NK cell percentages varied.
- CD8+ T cells peaked in early childhood, naive T cells declined, and memory T cells increased.
- Specific markers like CD5 and CD23 on B cells showed distinct age-related expression patterns.
Conclusions:
- The study provides valuable reference data for immune cell profiles in Chinese pediatric populations.
- These findings contribute to a better understanding of immune system development during childhood.
Background:
Flow cytometric analysis of major lymphocyte populations and their subsets reveals age-related changes in the human cellular immune system.
Subjects And Methods:
Immunophenotypic markers were evaluated in 136 healthy pediatric subjects divided into groups of newborn infants (cord blood), children aged 1 to 2 years, 2 to 5 years, and 6 to 15 years.
Results:
The percentage of T cells increased gradually with age and the evolution of the percentage of B and NK cells was found to be variable. The percentage of CD4+ cells remains relatively unchanged from infancy to adolescence, but the percentage of CD8+ T cells was lowest at birth and reached maximal levels in the one to two year-old period. The percentage of naive T cells declined with time, but the percentage of memory T cells increased with age. Similar trends were seen in T-cell receptor alphabeta- and gammadelta-bearing T cells. The percentage of CD 11b+CD8+ T cells increased gradually from birth and reached maximal levels from 6 to 15 years old. The expression of the activation markers CD25 and HLA-DR on CD4+ T cells increased with age. The percentage of CD16+CD56- NK cells declined with age, but the evolution of the percentage of CD 16-CD56+ NK cells was variable. The fraction of B cells that expressed CD5 was high at birth (72.9%) and was highest in one to two year olds (73.1%), then declined steadily over time. The CD23 antigen was expressed on 41.9% of B cells at birth and 68.6% during the first to second year, then declined steadily with age.
Conclusion:
These data may serve as a reference range for studies of Chinese pediatric subjects.