Influenza vaccination in a healthy geriatric population: preferential induction of antibodies specific for the H3N2 influenza strain despite equal T cell responsiveness to all vaccine strains.

Cellular as well as humoral immune reactivity were studied in healthy young (< 30 years; n = 12) and older (> 65 years; n = 12) individuals before as well as 1 month after immunization with a trivalent whole virus influenza vaccine. Before vaccination, peripheral blood mononuclear cell proliferation in response to in vitro stimulation with each of the virus strains was low in both groups. No antibodies against either the H1N1 or the B strain were found in most individuals, while 91% of the young and 75% of the elderly persons had low but protective antibody titres to the H3N2 strain. Vaccination led to a significant enhancement of peripheral blood mononuclear cell reactivity to all three influenza strains in both age groups. However, there was a significant difference in the humoral immune response between the groups. While there was a vigorous antibody response to all three vaccine strains among young persons, protective titres against the H1N1 and the B strains were only just reached in the old. In contrast, antibody production to the H3N2 strain was most abundant in the majority of elderly individuals, leading to significantly higher titres in the old than in the young group. In conclusion, the results demonstrate the preferential induction of antibodies to one particular influenza strain despite equal T cell recruitment to all vaccine strains in healthy aged individuals after immunization with a trivalent influenza vaccine. Our findings underline the complexity of immunological alterations to be expected after vaccination in healthy elderlies.