Research Paper Volume 7, Issue 12 pp 1077—1085
A shortened interval between vaccinations with the trivalent inactivated influenza vaccine increases responsiveness in the aged
- 1 The Wistar Institute, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
- 2 Gene Therapy and Vaccines Program, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
- 3 Division of Geriatrics, Department of Medicine, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC 27710, USA
- 4 Geriatric Research, Education, and Clinical Center, Durham VA Medical Center, Durham, NC 27705, USA
Received: November 3, 2015 Accepted: November 21, 2015 Published: December 3, 2015
https://doi.org/10.18632/aging.100852How to Cite
Abstract
We tested antibody responses to the trivalent inactivated influenza vaccine (TIV) in 34 aged individuals (>65yrs) during the 2012/13 vaccination seasons. Nearly all had been vaccinated the previous year although the time interval between the two vaccine doses differed. One subgroup was re-vaccinated in 2012/13 within 6-9 months of their 2011/12 vaccination, the other received the two doses of vaccine in the typical ~12 month interval. Unexpectedly the sub-cohort with early revaccination exhibited significantly increased response rates and antibody titers to TIV compared to their normally re-vaccinated aged counter parts. Microarray analyses of gene expression in whole blood RNA taken at the day of the 2012/13 re-vaccination revealed statistically significant differences in expression of 754 genes between the individuals with early re-vaccination compared to subjects vaccinated in a normal 12 month interval. These observations suggest that TIV has long-lasting effects on the immune system affecting B cell responses as well as the transcriptome of peripheral blood mononuclear cells and this residual effect may augment vaccination response in patients where the effect of the previous vaccination has not yet diminished.