Em. Gardner et al., Immune response to influenza vaccine in healthy elderly: lack of association with plasma beta-carotene, retinol, alpha-tocopherol, or zinc, MECH AGE D, 117(1-3), 2000, pp. 29-45
Immunity and nutritional status are compromised with age, yet the relations
hip between them is unclear. Immune responses and plasma micronutrient leve
ls of 61 healthy elderly (mean 81 years) and 27 young (mean 27 years) were
assessed before and after immunization with trivalent influenza vaccine (FL
U). FLU-induced proliferation and IFN-gamma levels of elderly were lower th
an young before and after immunization. Proliferation and IFN-gamma levels
increased after immunization of young, but not elderly. FLU-induced IL-6 an
d IL-10 levels did not change after immunization of either group. While ant
ibody titers to all three FLU components increased after vaccination of you
ng and elderly, post-vaccination titers of elderly were lower than young, A
lthough plasma retinol and zinc levels of young and elderly were similar be
fore and after vaccination, elderly had higher plasma beta-carotene and alp
ha-tocopherol levels at both assessments that increased after vaccination.
Importantly, plasma micronutrient levels were comparable for elderly with o
r without intact (titers greater than or equal to 40 and fourfold rise post
-vaccination) antibody responses after vaccination. These results suggest t
hat differences in these plasma micronutrients (1) are not required to obse
rve decreased FLU responses of healthy elderly compared to young and (2) ar
e not associated with differences in antibody responses among healthy elder
ly. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.