BCG vaccination induces enhanced frequencies of dendritic cells and altered plasma levels of type I and type III interferons in elderly individuals.

Abstract

OBJECTIVE:

BCG can improve the response to vaccines directed against viral infections, and also, BCG vaccination reduces all-cause mortality, most likely by protecting against unrelated infections. However, the effect of BCG vaccination on dendritic cell (DC) subsets is not well characterized.

METHODS:

We investigated the impact of BCG vaccination on the frequencies of DC subsets and type I and III interferons (IFNs) using whole blood and plasma samples in a group of elderly individuals (age 60-80 years) at one-month post-vaccination as part of our clinical study to examine the effect of BCG on COVID-19.

RESULTS:

Our results demonstrate that BCG vaccination induced enhanced frequencies of plasmacytoid DC (pDC) and myeloid DC (mDC). BCG vaccination also induced diminished plasma levels of type I IFNs, IFNα and IFNβ but increased levels of type III IFNs, IL-28A and IL-29.

CONCLUSIONS:

Thus, BCG vaccination was associated with enhanced DC subsets and IL-28A/IL-29 in elderly individuals, suggesting its ability to induce non-specific innate immune responses.

• Authors: Nathella Pavan Kumar, Chandrasekaran Padmapriyadarsini, Anuradha Rajamanickam, Perumal Kannabiran Bhavani, Arul Nancy, Bharathi Jeyadeepa, Nandhini Selvaraj, Dinesh Ashokan, Rachel Mariam Renji, Vijayalakshmi Venkataramani, Srikanth Tripathy, Subash Babu
• Journal: International journal of infectious diseases : IJID : official publication of the International Society for Infectious Diseases (Int J Infect Dis) Vol. 110 Pg. 98-104 (Sep 2021) ISSN: 1878-3511 [Electronic] Canada
• PMID: 34302964 (Publication Type: Journal Article)
• Copyright: Copyright © 2021 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

Chemical References

• BCG Vaccine
• Interferon-alpha
• Interferons
• Interferon Lambda

Topics

• Aged
• Aged, 80 and over
• BCG Vaccine
• COVID-19
• Dendritic Cells
• Humans
• Interferon-alpha
• Interferons
• Middle Aged
• SARS-CoV-2
• Vaccination
• Interferon Lambda