Zinc & Immunosenescence

Presentation by Khushboo Verma

Peer-reviewers: Kritika Pathak

Introduction:

“Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food.” - Hippocrates

Research suggests that nutrition could be the key to countering the effects of aging. Zinc is an essential trace element that regulates several biologic processes (Cabrera, 2015). It is crucial for the development and function of cells that mediate innate immune responses (neutrophils, macrophages, and NK cells). B and T lymphocytes of the adaptive/specific immune response rely on zinc to produce antibodies and execute cytotoxic killing, respectively (Haase & Rink, 2009).

Zinc deficiency, at any age, triggers events that mirror the immunologic decline seen with aging. Reduced activity of NK cells, impaired neutrophil responses, and compromised macrophage-mediated elimination of pathogens result in the breakdown of the first line of defense. A lack of zinc signaling also leads to loss of thymus tissue and consequent decline in T cell number and function that favors susceptibility to infections and cancers (Maares & Haase, 2016; Shankar & Prasad, 1998).

Zinc supplementation has been shown to reverse immunologic deficits. With the administration of zinc triggering proliferation of thymus cells and the promising response to zinc as a part of the human growth hormone, vitamin D, and metformin cocktail, there appears to be merit in this approach (Fahy et al., 2019; Iovino et al., 2019).

Future Research

  • Exploring the role of zinc during different phases of human life – pre-puberty, puberty, adulthood, and old age

  • Prospectively studying the effects of early zinc supplementation in delaying immunologic aging

  • Further evaluating the role of zinc in thymus regeneration

  • Deciphering the interplay between zinc and hormones in the maintenance of body functions

 

References

Cabrera, Á. J. R. (2015). Zinc, aging, and immunosenescence: an overview. Pathobiology of Aging & Age-Related Diseases, 5(1), 25592. https://doi.org/10.3402/pba.v5.25592

Fahy, G. M., Brooke, R. T., Watson, J. P., Good, Z., Vasanawala, S. S., Maecker, H., Leipold, M. D., Lin, D. T. S., Kobor, M. S., & Horvath, S. (2019). Reversal of epigenetic aging and immunosenescent trends in humans. Aging Cell, 18(6), 1–12. https://doi.org/10.1111/acel.13028

Haase, H., & Rink, L. (2009). The immune system and the impact of zinc during aging. Immunity & Ageing, 6(1), 9. https://doi.org/10.1186/1742-4933-6-9

Iovino, L., Cooper, K., Kinsella, S., DeRoos, P., Jain, R., & Dudakov, J. A. (2019). Zinc Improves Thymic Regeneration after Allogeneic HSCT By Stimulating BMP4 Production from Endothelial Cells. Biology of Blood and Marrow Transplantation, 25(3), S333. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bbmt.2018.1...

Maares, M., & Haase, H. (2016). Zinc and immunity: An essential interrelation. Archives of Biochemistry and Biophysics, 611, 58–65. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.abb.2016.03...

Shankar, A. H., & Prasad, A. S. (1998). Zinc and immune function: the biological basis of altered resistance to infection. The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 68(2), 447S-463S. https://doi.org/10.1093/ajcn/68.2.447S