The Effect of Norepinephrine on Immune function in elderly people

노르에피네프린이 노인의 면역기능에 미치는 영향

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to examine how norepinephrine affects immunity in patients over age 65. Methods: We enrolled 25 male and female subjects age 65 or older. A low frequency electroacupuncture (EA) device was used to stimulate acupoint Hogu (L14). The 2 Hz frequency EA was applied to the acupoint for 20 minutes. Leukocyte subtypes-including neutrophils, lymphocytes, monocytes, eosinophils, and basophil-were then measured. The immunoglobulins IgG and IgM were also quantified. The data were finally analyzed using Wilcoxon singed-rank test and regression test as part of the SPSS WIN v. 10.1 program. Results: As norepinephrine levels decreased after EA stimulation, neutrophil, lymphocyte, and monocyte levels increased, and eosinophil and neutrophils levels decreased. Neutrophil and monocyte levels did not change to a statistically significant degree, but eosinophil levels showed a statistically significant decrease (p<0.05). Immunoglobulin IgG showed a statistically significant increase (p<0.05). Conclusion: This study showed that norepinephrine does affect immunity in persons over the age of 65. This indicates that there is an interaction between the nervous system and the immune system, and interaction that plays a crucial roles in the body's immune resistance and homeostasis.