title: Serum cytokine levels and antibody response to influenza vaccine in the elderly.
abstract: Cytokines play critical roles in regulating the antibody response to vaccines. We sought to understand the role of endogenous cytokines in the determination of antibody production in the elderly, a group of subjects known to have a lower response rate to vaccination. We found that in a healthy elderly group, only 52% of whom responded to the influenza vaccine, endogenous levels of interleukin 6 (IL-6), IL-10 and gamma interferon (IFNgamma) did not differ statistically significantly between responders and non-responders (responders: n = 27, IL-6 = 293 +/- 101 pg/ml, IL-10 = 882 +/- 240 pg/ml; nonresponders: n = 26, IL-6 = 223 +/- 71 pg/ml, P = 0.57, IL-10 = 445 +/- 148 pg/ml, mean +/- SE, P = 0.14, respectively, and undetectable IFNgamma). Serum levels of these three cytokines were not changed significantly four weeks after vaccination (P < 0.05 for IL-6 and P < 0.01 for IL-10). In addition, there were also no age-dependent differences in serum IL-6 and IL-10 levels.
authors.affiliation: Dept of Molecular Biology and Immunology, United States Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases, Fort Detrick, Frederick, MD 21702, USA.
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Krakauer
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Russo
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000914:Antibodies, Viral / Q000097:blood*; D016207:Cytokines / Q000097:blood*; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006386:Hemagglutination Tests; D006801:Humans; D009980:Influenza A virus / Q000276:immunology; D009981:Influenza B virus / Q000276:immunology; D007252:Influenza Vaccines / Q000276:immunology*; D007371:Interferon-gamma / Q000097:blood; D016753:Interleukin-10 / Q000097:blood; D015850:Interleukin-6 / Q000097:blood
chemical_list: D000914:Antibodies, Viral; D016207:Cytokines; D007252:Influenza Vaccines; D015850:Interleukin-6; D016753:Interleukin-10; D007371:Interferon-gamma