If you've suspected something inside you might be missing or flawed. If you've ever felt like you don't measure up. The authors declared no competing interests.If you've known broken relationships. Studies were performed in the Columbia Center for Translational ImmunologyРІР‚в„ўs Flow Cytometry Core, supported by NIH grants S10RR027050 and S10OD020056, and the Columbia Stem Cell InitiativeРІР‚в„ўs Flow Core, supported in part by NIH grant S10OD026845. National Institutes of Health (NIH grants AI100119, AI106697, K23 AI141686, and AI42288) and the Helmsley Charitable Trust. Brusko (University of Florida), Maigan Brusko (University of Florida), Thomas J. 10 in Science Immunology.Р”Вonna Farber also is chief of the Division of Surgical Sciences in the Department of Surgery, Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons, and principal investigator at the Columbia Center for Translational Immunology.Р”Р„ll authors (all from Columbia University unless noted): Puspa Thapa, Rebecca S. The paper, titled ' Infant T cells are developmentally adapted for robust lung immune responses through enhanced T cell receptor signaling,' was published Dec. РІР‚СљMost vaccine formulations and doses are the same for all ages, but understanding the distinct immune responses in childhood suggests we can use lower doses for children and could help us design vaccines that are more effective for this age group,РІР‚Сњ Farber says. The study could lead to better vaccine designs for children. TheyРІР‚в„ўre already handling multiple exposures.РІР‚Сњ РІР‚СљAny child living in the world, particularly before we started wearing masks, is exposed to a huge number of new antigens every day. РІР‚СљThat is the time to get vaccines and you shouldn't worry about getting multiple vaccines in that window,РІР‚Сњ Farber says. The findings also help explain why vaccines are particularly effective in childhood, when T cells are very robust. That gives the virus a chance to replicate more, and thatРІР‚в„ўs when you get sick.РІР‚Сњ Adults faced with a novel pathogen are slower to react. РІР‚СљSARS-CoV-2 is new to absolutely everybody, so weРІР‚в„ўre now seeing a natural, side-by-side comparison of the adult and infant immune system,РІР‚Сњ Farber says. That appears to be playing out in the case of COVID. In some ways, it may be even better than the adult immune system, since itРІР‚в„ўs designed to respond to a multitude of new pathogens.РІР‚Сњ РІР‚СљWhat this is saying is that the infantРІР‚в„ўs immune system is robust, it's efficient, and it can get rid of pathogens in early life. РІР‚СљWe were looking at naР“Р‡ve T cells that have never been activated, so it was a surprise that they behaved differently based on age,РІР‚Сњ Farber says. A laboratory comparison found similar enhancements among human infant compared to adult T cells. In the competition to eradicate the virus, the infant T cells won handily: NaР“Р‡ve T cells from infant mice detect lower levels of the virus than adult cells and the infant cells proliferated faster and traveled in greater numbers to the site of infection, rapidly building a strong defense against the virus. The cells were placed into an adult mouse infected with a virus. In the new study, Farber and colleagues leveled the playing field and only tested the immune systemРІР‚в„ўs ability to respond to a new pathogen, essentially eliminating any contribution from immunological memories.Р”Р‡or the head-to-head comparison, the researchers collected naР“Р‡ve T cells-immune cells that have never encountered a pathogen-from both infant and adult mice. РІР‚СљAdults donРІР‚в„ўt get sick as often because weРІР‚в„ўve recorded memories of these viruse, and the memories protect us,РІР‚Сњ Farber says, РІР‚Сљwhereas everything the baby encounters is new to them.РІР‚Сњ But unlike adults, babies are seeing these viruses for the first time. Images from the Farber laboratory/Columbia University Irving Medical Center.Р”В«abies do get a lot of respiratory illnesses from viruses, like influenza and respiratory syncytial virus, compared to adults. The colors in the images represent different molecules involved in T cell activation. Watching T cells react to flu antigens helped the researchers identify why naive T cells from infant mice (shown above) responded faster and more robustly to the pathogen than the same cells from adult mice.

Stronger than you think