– ScitTechDaily –
As the immune system weakens with age, researchers have found a way to temporarily boost its function by reprogramming liver cells to support T-cell development.
As people get older, the immune system often becomes less effective. T cell numbers shrink and these cells tend to respond more slowly to invading germs, which can increase vulnerability to many kinds of infections.
To address this problem, scientists at MIT and the Broad Institute developed a method to temporarily program liver cells in a way that strengthens T-cell performance. The goal is to make up for the age-related decline of the thymus, the organ where T cells normally mature.
