Hallmark features of immunosenescence are absent in familial longevity

Abstract

Seropositivity for CMV is one of the parameters of the "immune risk profile" associated with mortality in longitudinal studies of the very elderly and may accelerate immunosenescence. Thus, any genetic factors influencing human longevity may be associated with susceptibility to CMV and CMV-accelerated immunosenescence. To test this, we analyzed long-lived families in the Leiden Longevity Study (LLS) in which offspring enjoy a 30% reduced standardized mortality rate, possibly owing to genetic enrichment. Serum C-reactive protein levels and the frequency of different T cell subsets were compared between 97 LLS offspring and 97 controls (their partners, representing the normal population). We a..