Butenko G M
IARC Sci Publ. 1985(58):71-83.
Age-associated changes in immunity, which are manifested by a reduced immune response and a greater frequency of autoimmune events, are closely linked to the pathology of ageing. Further indications that this is so are the more marked changes in immunity indices in old subjects suffering from cardiovascular, nervous and bone and joint diseases; using other indices, however, such changes appear to be less pronounced. Ageing of the immune system is accompanied by suppression of cellular and humoral elements of older individuals, as demonstrated clearly by experiments involving heterochronic parabiosis and heterochronic transplantation of cells and organs (thymus, spleen and bone marrow). Our findings may suggest that changes in the immune system with ageing are not a consequence of loss or decreases in certain cells or substances; rather, they are due to active suppression of the regulation of cell differentiation and of cooperative interaction between various types of cells. Such effects may be of a systemic or local character and reflect the expression of the organism's ontogenetic programme. In turn, primary disturbances of the immune system can cause several of the secondary ageing phenomena, dominated by various forms of pathology.
与年龄相关的免疫变化表现为免疫反应降低和自身免疫事件发生频率增加，这与衰老的病理过程密切相关。心血管疾病、神经系统疾病以及骨与关节疾病老年患者免疫指标变化更为显著，进一步表明了这一点；然而，使用其他指标时，此类变化似乎不那么明显。免疫系统的衰老伴随着老年个体细胞和体液成分的抑制，涉及异时联体共生以及细胞和器官（胸腺、脾脏和骨髓）异时移植的实验清楚地证明了这一点。我们的研究结果可能表明，免疫系统随年龄增长的变化并非某些细胞或物质丢失或减少的结果；相反，它们是由于细胞分化调节以及各类细胞之间协同相互作用受到主动抑制所致。此类影响可能具有全身性或局部性，反映了生物体个体发育程序的表达。反过来，免疫系统的原发性紊乱可导致几种继发性衰老现象，主要表现为各种形式的病理状态。
