Borrowing an idea from cancer immunotherapy, scientists make old-mice immune systems youthful again Megan Molteni By Megan Molteni March 27, 2024

Scientists rejuvenate immune systems in old mice https://www.statnews.com/2024/03/27/immune-system-rejuvenated-stanford-research-aging-stem-cells/?utm_campaign=morning_rounds&utm_medium=email&_hsmi=300173672&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-9LdG7gS0Q3u_zaRNd_Ugi1rSDc4Ir4V1dpQSdFWM-MQAMo28haur2UIdSVQS9rJk2D1NM5dfr4C8LnJ5-AzXHrKLCkpQ&utm_content=300173672&utm_source=hs_email The “twilight of immunity” has a much more poetic flavor than almost any other phrase describing our bodies’ deterioration with age. STAT’s Megan Motleni calls this to mind in today’s story about research seeking to explain how our aging immune systems leave us more vulnerable to infection. Reporting in Nature yesterday on their experiments in mice, scientists traced waning immune strength to the bone marrow where blood and immune cells originate from hematopoietic stem cells. The balance of immune memory cells, blood cells, and front-line defenders shifts over time depending on what kind of cells are produced, with an impact on how well they work against invaders. When the scientists restored a youthful balance of these cells with injections of antibodies, they were able to rejuvenate the immune systems of older mice — allowing them to better fend off viral attacks. Megan has more on whether and how this might hold up in humans, plus the rich history behind the work. The twilight of immunity: emerging concepts in aging of the immune system https://www.nature.com/articles/s41590-017-0006-x?utm_campaign=morning_rounds&utm_medium=email&_hsmi=300173672&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-_8_7-bdRPRkAC9muXhMech-1XmROmeiGH-g9A3HMGcz-3P7-ltlXDTxVdIqrDQfqcz0TvkuOp46w75g-wENid4HA-3HQ&utm_content=300173672&utm_source=hs_email Depleting myeloid-biased haematopoietic stem cells rejuvenates aged immunity https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-024-07238-x?utm_campaign=morning_rounds&utm_medium=email&_hsmi=300173672&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-8CYY00ZS6n1GguktPXtSQiFvQi1geeKJa1vHJ4nRtYKBxQ1z6z_8R9UgfMYlCXhv92ef4zo0NQiPqy1oX1odOPdOPU4A&utm_content=300173672&utm_source=hs_email