Age-Related Decline in Primary CD8+ T Cell Responses Is Associated with the Development of Senescence in Virtual Memory CD8+ T Cells

Age-associated decreases in primary CD8+ T cell responses occur, in part, due to direct effects on naive CD8+ T cells to reduce intrinsic functionality, but the precise nature of this defect remains undefined. Aging also causes accumulation of antigen-naive but semi-differentiated "virtual memory" (TVM) cells, but their contribution to age-related functional decline is unclear. Here, we show that TVM cells are poorly proliferative in aged mice...