With a growing world population of the aged in a state of immunological decline, there is an urgent need to develop new methods to delay or, better yet, prevent the loss of immune function. In Aging, Immunity, and Infection, the prominent immunogerontologists Joseph and Julia Albright, critically review the major features and functions of the immune system that are most likely, or known, to be significantly altered by aging, and offer insightful analyses of the consequences for those aging subjects who must cope with infection. Topics of special interest include the demographics and theories of immunosenescence, the gradual breakdown of resistance to infection in the aged, and the effects of aging on selected mechanisms of both innate and adaptive immunity to infections. The Albrights also suggest how advances may be made in understanding the basic biology of immunosenescence, newer methods of treatment and prevention, and offer an evaluation of such provocative ideas as nutritional intervention and lifespan extension in immunosenescence. Chapter summaries-along with lists of key research areas and recent advances-provide a framework for greater insight into major aspects of the problem and its emerging solutions. Informative and forward-looking, Aging, Immunity, and Infection offers geriatricians, infectious disease specialists, and immunologists a state-of-the-art understanding of the deleterious effects of aging on the immune system, even as it provides a basis for research on how best to strengthen immunity in the elderly and reduce their susceptibility to infectious diseases
CONTENT
1 Human Aging: Present and Future -- Demographics -- Infectious Diseases of the Aging -- Limits on Life Expectancy and Future Prospects -- Theories of Senescence -- Summary -- References -- 2 Aging and Altered Resistance to Infection -- Relatively Common Bacterial Infections of Aging Humans -- Selected Examples of Age-Associated Susceptibility to Bacterial Infections -- Bacterial Interactions with Mucosal Surfaces -- Antibiotic Resistance and Bacterial Variation -- Viral Infections in Aging Humans -- Protozoan Parasites in Aging Subjects -- Fungal Infections in Aging Subjects -- Summary -- References -- 3 Senescence of Natural/Innate Resistance to Infection -- Pattern Recognizing Receptors of Innate Immunity -- Phagocytic Cells: Monocytes/Macrophages -- Microbial Evasion of Phagocytic Destruction -- Age-Related Changes in Macrophages -- Phagocytic Cells: Neutrophils -- Natural Killer/Lymphokine-Activated Killer Cells -- Summary -- References -- 4 Aging of Adaptive/Acquired Immunity -- Aging of the Thymus and Thymus-Derived (T) Cells -- The Functions and Diversity of Peripheral T Cells -- Summary: Known and Cognizable Effects of Aging T Cells -- Differentiation, Functions, and Aging of B Cells -- Summary -- References -- 5 Nutrition, Longevity, and Integrity of the Immune System -- RCI-Mediated Delay of Immunosenescence -- How Does RCI Promote Life-Span Extension? -- Dietary Restriction vs Malnutrition -- References -- Epilogue
