Innate immunity in aging: impact on macrophage function
Authors: Julie Plowden1; Mary Renshaw-Hoelscher1; Carrie Engleman1; Jacqueline Katz1; Suryaprakash Sambhara
Source: Aging Cell, Volume 3, Number 4, August 2004 , pp. 161-167(7)
Publisher: Blackwell Publishing
Abstract:
Summary Innate and adaptive immune functions decline with age, leading to increased susceptibility to infectious diseases and cancer, and reduced responses to preventive vaccination in the elderly population. Macrophages function as pathogen sensors and play an important role in the initiation of inflammatory responses, elimination of pathogens, manipulation of the adaptive immune response and reparation of damaged tissue. In this paper, we review the literature addressing the impact of aging on the macrophage population.Keywords: aging; cytokines; immunity; inflammation; macrophage; wound healing
Document Type: Research article
DOI: 10.1111/j.1474-9728.2004.00102.x
Affiliations: 1: Influenza Branch, Division of Viral and Rickettsial Diseases, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA 30333, USA

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