Weksler M E, Schwab R
Department of Medicine, Cornell University Medical College, New York, N.Y. 10021.
Exp Clin Immunogenet. 1992;9(4):182-7.
Immune senescence is characterized by a dysregulation of the immune system. With respect to humoral immunity, aging is associated with an increased level of many autoantibodies and a decreased antibody response to most foreign antigens. This observation reflects a decreased capacity to activate antibody production by CD5-negative B cells despite a normal or increased capacity to generate antibodies produced by the CD5-positive B cells. A similar dysregulation of cell-mediated immunity is manifested by an altered balance in cytokine production by T cells from old as compared to young subjects. Thus, the production of interleukin-2 (IL-2), IL-3 and granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor by T cells from old subjects is decreased although the production of IL-4, IL-5 and IL-6 is undiminished or actually increased.
免疫衰老的特征是免疫系统失调。就体液免疫而言，衰老与多种自身抗体水平升高以及对大多数外来抗原的抗体反应降低有关。这一观察结果反映出，尽管CD5阳性B细胞产生抗体的能力正常或增强，但激活CD5阴性B细胞产生抗体的能力却有所下降。与年轻受试者相比，老年受试者T细胞产生细胞因子的平衡发生改变，这体现了细胞介导免疫的类似失调。因此，老年受试者T细胞产生白细胞介素-2（IL-2）、IL-3和粒细胞巨噬细胞集落刺激因子的能力下降，而IL-4、IL-5和IL-6的产生并未减少，实际上还有所增加。
