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- Title
Age-Dependent Pre-Vaccination Immunity Affects the Immunogenicity of Varicella Zoster Vaccination in Middle-aged Adults.
- Authors
van der Heiden, Marieke; de Rond, Lia G. H.; van Zelm, Menno C.; Berbers, Guy A. M.; Boots, Annemieke M. H.; Buisman, Anne-Marie
- Abstract
Background: Prevention of infectious diseases is of high priority in the rapidly aging population. Unfortunately, vaccine responses in the elderly are frequently diminished. Timely vaccination of middle-aged adults might improve the immune responses to vaccines, although knowledge on pathogen-specific immune responses and factors affecting these responses, in middle-aged adults is currently limited. We thus investigated the immune responses after vaccination with Zostavax consisting of live-attenuated varicella zoster virus (VZV). Methods: Blood samples were taken pre-, 14 days, 28 days, and 1 year after a primary VZV vaccination (Zostavax) at middle age (N = 53, 50-65 years of age). VZV-specific IFNγ-producing cells were measured by ELISpot, activated T-cells by flow cytometry, antibody levels and cytokine responses by fluorescent bead-based multiplex immunoassays, and whole blood cellular kinetics by TruCOUNT analysis. Results: Robust short-term enhancement of the VZV-specific IFNγ-producing cell numbers was observed post-vaccination in the middle-aged adults. Remarkably, longterm enhancement of VZV-specific IFNγ-producing cell numbers was induced only in participants with low numbers of VZV-specific pre-vaccination IFNγ-producing cells, who were significantly older. These participants also showed enhancement of VZV-specific activated CD4 T-cells, contrary to "exhausted" VZV-specific CD8 T-cells in participants with high numbers of VZV-specific pre-vaccination IFNγ-producing cells. Finally, a high CD4/CD8 T-cell ratio was associated with low numbers of pre-vaccination VZV-specific IFNγ-producing cells. Conclusion: These results suggest that adults in their early sixties, who showed a high CD4/CD8 T-cell ratio and low numbers of VZV-specific IFNγ-producing cells, benefit from VZV vaccination. This provides important knowledge on factors affecting VZVspecific immune responses in middle-aged adults as well as for strategies to strengthen immunity before reaching old age.
- Subjects
IMMUNOGENETICS; VARICELLA-zoster virus diseases; VACCINATION
- Publication
Frontiers in Immunology, 2018, p1
- ISSN
1664-3224
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.3389/fimmu.2018.00046