Abstract # 2062 Affective status and immune responses to influenza vaccine in older persons living in South Florida

Abstract

Background Psychosocial factors predict poor influenza vaccine (IV) response. Aging and negative affect (NA) may dampen IV response by reducing class switch recombination (CSR), a B-cell process primed by IV. We examined whether greater positive affect [PA] and less NA pre- and post-IV relates to greater antibody responses and CSR in older persons receiving IV. Method Older healthy persons (>60 yrs) completed the Affect Balance Scale (ABS) for NA and PA pre and post-IV in two separate Flu seasons. They received trivalent IV (H1N1, H3N2, B), and were re-assessed at 7 (t7)and 28 days (t28) for HAI titers and % switched B-cells (IgG+/IgA+CD27+) to quantify CSR. Results Season 1: greater PA was associated with greater HAI titer Fold increase and greater CSR at t28. NA at t28 correlated with less CSR (p’s Conclusion Optimizing affect pre- and post-IV may improve health in older persons.