Vitamin E and infectious diseases in the aged.
The incidence of infectious diseases, particularly respiratory diseases, increases with age. Age-associated decline in immune function contributes to the increased susceptibility of the aged to infections. Vitamin E supplementation has been shown to improve some aspects of immune function in aged animals and human subjects. The protective effect of vitamin E against viral or bacterial infections in experimentally-challenged young animals has been reported. We investigated the effects of supplementation with vitamin E and other antioxidants on resistance to influenza infection in young and old animals. While vitamin E-supplemented young mice showed only a modest reduction in lung viral titre, vitamin E-supplemented old mice exhibited a highly significant (P < 0.05) reduction in viral lung titre. In subsequent studies, we focused on the mechanism of vitamin E-induced reduction of influenza viral titre. The results of these studies as well as those reported by other investigators on the relationship between vitamin E and infectious diseases will be reviewed.
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Jean Mayer Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging at Tufts University, Boston, MA 02111, USA.
Meydani
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D000368:Aged; D000375:Aging / Q000276:immunology; D000818:Animals; D000975:Antioxidants / Q000008:administration & dosage; D019587:Dietary Supplements; D006801:Humans; D007113:Immunity, Innate; D007239:Infections / Q000453:epidemiology; D007251:Influenza, Human / Q000276:immunology; D051379:Mice; D014810:Vitamin E / Q000008:administration & dosage
D000975:Antioxidants; D014810:Vitamin E