title: Dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) treatment reverses the impaired immune response of old mice to influenza vaccination and protects from influenza infection.
abstract: Dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) is a native steroid with an immunomodulating activity. Recently it was suggested that its age-associated decline is related with immunosenescence. To examine whether DHEA administration could effectively reverse the age-associated decline of immunity against influenza vaccine, aged mice were simultaneously vaccinated and treated with DHEA. Reversal of the age-associated decline and a significant constant increase of humoral response was observed in treated mice. Increased resistance to post-vaccination intranasal challenge with live influenza virus was observed in DHEA-treated aged mice. Thus, DHEA treatment overcame the age-related defect in the immunity of old mice against influenza.
authors.affiliation: Division of Medicine, Hadassah University Hospital, Jerusalem, Israel.
authors.forename: H D
authors.initials: HD
authors.lastname: Danenberg
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ben-Yehuda
authors.forename: Z
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Zakay-Rones
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Friedman
mesh_terms: D000276:Adjuvants, Immunologic / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D000375:Aging / Q000276:immunology*; D000818:Animals; D000914:Antibodies, Viral / Q000096:biosynthesis / Q000187:drug effects; D003687:Dehydroepiandrosterone / Q000276:immunology* / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D004359:Drug Therapy, Combination; D005260:Female; D007252:Influenza Vaccines / Q000276:immunology*; D051379:Mice; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL; D009976:Orthomyxoviridae Infections / Q000276:immunology* / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000517:prevention & control
chemical_list: D000276:Adjuvants, Immunologic; D000914:Antibodies, Viral; D007252:Influenza Vaccines; D003687:Dehydroepiandrosterone