ArticleAging cell2018
Major features of immunesenescence, including reduced thymic output, are ameliorated by high levels of physical activity in adulthood.
Article in Aging cell, 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to 2 registered trials, which are not on this map. Cited by 161 papers, 6 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
An Observational Study of Aging Biomarkers in Older Elite Athletes Compared to Non-exercising Healthy Older Adults.
Remotely Monitored, Mobile Health-supported, High Intensity Interval Training Before Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation (REMM-HIIT-HCT)
Who cites it
161 citing papers in PubMed, 6 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 249 citations in OpenAlex.
- Does Lifelong Exercise Counteract Low-Grade Inflammation Associated with Aging? A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Sports medicine (Auckland, N.Z.) · 2025Pooled it
- Pooled it
- Impact of exercise on markers of B cell-related immunity: A systematic review.Journal of sport and health science · 2024Pooled it
- Impact of BMI on the survival outcomes of non-small cell lung cancer patients treated with immune checkpoint inhibitors: a meta-analysis.BMC cancer · 2023Pooled it
- The prognostic value of sarcopenia in oesophageal cancer: A systematic review and meta-analysis.Journal of cachexia, sarcopenia and muscle · 2023Pooled it
- Influence of Exercise on Exhausted and Senescent T Cells: A Systematic Review.Frontiers in physiology · 2021Pooled it
- Effect of the mitophagy inducer urolithin A on age-related immune decline: a randomized, placebo-controlled trial.Nature aging · 2025Trial
- Trial
- Biomarkers of leaky gut are related to inflammation and reduced physical function in older adults with cardiometabolic disease and mobility limitations.GeroScience · 2019Trial
- Exploring the feasibility of exercise training during (neo)adjuvant chemotherapy in women with early-stage breast cancer: a pilot study examining immune and metabolic outcomes.Supportive care in cancer : official journal of the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer · 2026Article
- Multiomics profiling identifies molecular and cellular signatures of regular exercise in human peripheral blood.Science advances · 2026Article
- Exercise-associated epigenetic remodeling and TCR repertoire dynamics in Lynch syndrome carriers.iScience · 2026Article
- Risk Factors for Secondary Immunodeficiency in the Aged.The journal of allergy and clinical immunology. In practice · 2026Review
- CD31Physiological reports · 2026Article
- Exploring the role of β2-microglobulin in the relationship between physical activity and DNAm-predicted PhenoAge: Evidence from a population-based and mice single-cell RNA-sequencing study.Journal of advanced research · 2026Article
- Immunosenescence in systemic and multi-organ aging: mechanisms, inter-organ crosstalk, and translational opportunities.npj aging · 2026Review
- Repurposing niclosamide to mitigate inflammaging: a review of multi-target mechanisms in cellular senescence and age-related decline.Inflammation research : official journal of the European Histamine Research Society ... [et al.] · 2026Review
- Lifestyle intervention is associated with attenuation of ER stress/inflammation and enhancement of naive immune cell identity in older adults with metabolic disease.bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2026Article
- Lifelong Exercise as a Modulator of CD4European journal of clinical investigation · 2026Review
- The case for space as a model of accelerated aging.Nature aging · 2026Review
101 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
5 authors at 3 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
It is widely accepted that aging is accompanied by remodelling of the immune system including thymic atrophy and increased frequency of senescent T cells, leading to immune compromise. However, physical activity, which influences immunity but declines dramatically with age, is not considered in this literature. We assessed immune profiles in 125 adults (55-79 years) who had maintained a high level of physical activity (cycling) for much of their adult lives, 75 age-matched older adults and 55 young adults not involved in regular exercise. The frequency of naïve T cells and recent thymic emigrants (RTE) were both higher in cyclists compared with inactive elders, and RTE frequency in cyclists was no different to young adults. Compared with their less active counterparts, the cyclists had significantly higher serum levels of the thymoprotective cytokine IL-7 and lower IL-6, which promotes thymic atrophy. Cyclists also showed additional evidence of reduced immunesenescence, namely lower Th17 polarization and higher B regulatory cell frequency than inactive elders. Physical activity did not protect against all aspects of immunesenescence: CD28
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What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.