Age-related remodeling of the sialoglycans dampens murine CD8

Hanlin Zhang, C Kimberly Tsui, Jesse Garcia Castillo, Esther Jeong Yoon Kim, Audrey Evangelista, HengChen Liu, Larry K Joe, Nicholas Twells, Ellen A Robey, Lara K Mahal, Michel DuPage, Andrew Dillin

Division of Immunology and Molecular Medicine, Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA.Division of Immunology and Molecular Medicine, Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA. · pubmed

Paper

Abstract

Glycans regulate cellular function, yet how aging affects the glycocalyx remains unclear. Here, we investigate changes in immune cell glycocalyx with age and find that α2,6-linked sialic acid, a glycan epitope associated with inhibitory signaling, is down-regulated in T cells from old animals. This reduction is tightly correlated with age-associated accumulation of effector T cells, which have little to no α2,6-linked sialic acid. To understand how α2,6-linked sialic acid affects T cell physiology, we generated a mouse model with T cell-specific deletion of sialyltransferase gene

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Research summary

The paper claims that age-related down-regulation of α2,6-linked sialic acid in T cells is associated with the accumulation of effector T cells. This research is relevant as it explores the molecular changes in immune cells due to aging, which could contribute to understanding the mechanisms of aging and potential interventions.

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