# Influence of Age on CD4 T Memory Cells

> **NIH NIH R01** · PALO ALTO VETERANS INSTIT FOR RESEARCH · 2020 · $375,965

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY / ABSTRACT
Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disease. While pathogenetic mechanisms are
unresolved, neuroinflammation appears to play a contributory or possibly even a causative role. A recently
published study has described an expansion of terminally differentiated effector T cells in the peripheral blood of
Alzheimer's patients, reminiscent of findings in individuals with chronic infection or autoimmune disease.
Moreover, oligoclonal T cell population were found in the brain of AD patients, including T cells specific for EBV
antigens. Based on our current studies of ex vivo tetramer-sorted cells specific for a variety of viral antigens, we
propose here that chromatin accessibility mapping of such antigen-specific T cells is an excellent tool to
determine whether they have a distinct activation or differentiation history compared to non-AD amyloid-negative
individuals. Specifically, we will compare chromatin accessible sites in T cells specific for EBV latent and lytic
antigens with varicella zoster virus and influenza antigens as controls. Detection of a unique pattern of chromatin
accessibility would strongly support the notion that these T cells are actively involved in the disease process.
Moreover, identification of such sites would allow us to infer transcription factor networks that regulate the
differentiation of these T cells. In a second step, we plan to compare AD patients to non-AD amyloid-positive
individuals to determine whether the T cell response is already present in the early stages of the disease.
Conversely, a negative result would strongly imply that the reported expansion of and brain infiltration with
oligoclonal T cell populations specific to EBV in Alzheimer's patients is non-specific.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10120991
- **Project number:** 3R01AG045779-07S1
- **Recipient organization:** PALO ALTO VETERANS INSTIT FOR RESEARCH
- **Principal Investigator:** JORG J GORONZY
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $375,965
- **Award type:** 3
- **Project period:** 2013-07-01 → 2024-04-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10120991

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10120991, Influence of Age on CD4 T Memory Cells (3R01AG045779-07S1). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-25 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10120991. Licensed CC0.

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