# Core D: Thymic and peripheral Aspects of T cell Aging and Rejuvenation

> **NIH NIH P01** · UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA · 2020 · $164,203

## Abstract

Core D- Abstract
 Increased susceptibility to infectious disease is the most prominent repercussion of the aging
immune system. In addition to generating basic knowledge, Projects 1-4 of the “Thymic and
peripheral aspects of T cell aging and rejuvenation” Program Project Grant (Program) will
provide an array of potential rejuvenation strategies. The Immunological Response &
Rejuvenation Strategy Monitoring Core (Core D), located at the University of Arizona, will
provide the final experimental pipeline for testing those rejuvenation strategies. Specifically, the
global objective of Core D is to assess thymic export and peripheral maintenance of
naïve T cells following T cell rejuvenation in aged mice, and determine whether such
interventions can improve adaptive and protective immunity against viral infection in old
mice.
 The Core will provide dedicated personnel with the appropriate infectious disease expertise
to ensure consistency and quality control in the execution of study protocols, application of
experimental procedures, and animal observations and data collection necessary to meet the
Program's major research objectives. This testing pipeline will not only separate candidate
interventions by their efficacy, but will also identify potential stages at which some rejuvenation
strategies may fail to translate into improved immune function. The use of rigorous in vivo
analysis to track recent thymic emigrants, and immunity in response to West Nile virus, a
pathogen that shows disproportionally high morbidity and mortality within the elderly, will provide
this Program and its Projects stringent testing of a full spectrum of peripheral immune function
and protective immunity following T cell rejuvenation in aged mice. Thereby, the Core will deliver
rigorous preclinical data, that, together with the Human-Mouse Timeline (generated by Projects
1-4 and other Cores) will enable translational rejuvenation efforts in humans.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9967947
- **Project number:** 5P01AG052359-04
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA
- **Principal Investigator:** Megan J Smithey
- **Activity code:** P01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $164,203
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2017-09-15 → 2022-05-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9967947

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9967947, Core D: Thymic and peripheral Aspects of T cell Aging and Rejuvenation (5P01AG052359-04). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9967947. Licensed CC0.

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