The decline in B lymphopoiesis in aged mice reflects loss of very early B-lineage precursors

JP Miller, D Allman - The Journal of Immunology, 2003 - journals.aai.org
JP Miller, D Allman
The Journal of Immunology, 2003journals.aai.org
The primary age-related loss in B cell progenitors is thought to be at the pro-to pre-B cell
transition. However, we show that the frequencies and absolute numbers of all progenitor
populations for the B cell lineage, including B-lineage-committed pro-B cells and multipotent
B-lymphoid progenitors, decline in aged C57BL/6 mice. Moreover, when derived from aged
mice, lymphoid progenitors within every population examined exhibited suboptimal IL-7
responsiveness, demonstrating that age-associated suboptimal IL-7R signaling is a general …
Abstract
The primary age-related loss in B cell progenitors is thought to be at the pro-to pre-B cell transition. However, we show that the frequencies and absolute numbers of all progenitor populations for the B cell lineage, including B-lineage-committed pro-B cells and multipotent B-lymphoid progenitors, decline in aged C57BL/6 mice. Moreover, when derived from aged mice, lymphoid progenitors within every population examined exhibited suboptimal IL-7 responsiveness, demonstrating that age-associated suboptimal IL-7R signaling is a general property of all early B-lineage precursors. Collectively, these data indicate that aging results in a previously unappreciated decline in the earliest stages of B cell development.
journals.aai.org