Medical expert of the article
New publications
Age-related changes in cellular immunity in children
Last reviewed: 07.07.2025
All iLive content is medically reviewed or fact checked to ensure as much factual accuracy as possible.
We have strict sourcing guidelines and only link to reputable media sites, academic research institutions and, whenever possible, medically peer reviewed studies. Note that the numbers in parentheses ([1], [2], etc.) are clickable links to these studies.
If you feel that any of our content is inaccurate, out-of-date, or otherwise questionable, please select it and press Ctrl + Enter.
In diagnostics of various disease states in the immunocompetent system of both the fetus and the newborn child and children of later periods of life, methods for determining the degree of maturity and differentiation of individual populations or subpopulations of lymphocytes are of significant importance. Relative and absolute content of lymphocytes with certain immunological marker features are determined. There are normative data for judging the degree of normality or pathological deviations in the population composition of blood lymphocytes in children of different ages and adults.
The number of lymphocytes and their subpopulations in human umbilical cord blood
Indicators |
Relative, % |
Absolute, µl |
||
Minimum |
Maximum |
Minimum |
Maximum |
|
Leukocytes |
- |
- |
10 OOO |
15,000 |
Lymphocytes |
35 |
47 |
4200 |
6900 |
CD3 (T cells) |
49 |
62 |
2400 |
3700 |
CD4 (T-helpers) |
28 |
42 |
1500 |
2400 |
CD8 (T-killers) |
26 |
33 |
1200 |
2000 |
CD4/CD8 |
0.8 |
1.8 |
- |
- |
CD16 (NK cells) |
8 |
17 |
440 |
900 |
CD20 (B lymphocytes) |
14 |
23 |
700 |
1500 |
CD25 (IL-2 receptor) |
5.5 |
10 |
302 |
550 |
HLA II |
16 |
27 |
880 |
1485 |
The number of lymphocytes and their subpopulations in the peripheral blood of children under 1 year of age
Indicators |
Relative, % |
Absolute, µl |
||
Minimum |
Maximum |
Minimum |
Maximum |
|
Leukocytes |
- |
- |
6400 |
11,000 |
Lymphocytes |
39 |
59 |
2700 |
5400 |
CD3 (T cells) |
58 |
67 |
1900 |
3600 |
CD4 (T-helpers) |
38 |
50 |
1500 |
2800 |
CD8 (T-killers) |
18 |
25 |
800 |
1200 |
CD4/CD8 |
1.5 |
2.9 |
- |
- |
CD16 (NK cells) |
8 |
17 |
300 |
700 |
CD20 (B lymphocytes) |
19 |
31 |
500 |
1500 |
CD25 (IL-2 receptor) |
7 |
12 |
280 |
360 |
HLA II |
25 |
38 |
1000 |
1520 |
The number of lymphocytes and their subpopulations in the peripheral blood of children aged 1-6 years
Indicators |
Relative, % |
Absolute, µl |
||
Minimum |
Maximum |
Minimum |
Maximum |
|
Leukocytes |
- |
- |
4700 |
7300 |
Lymphocytes |
36 |
43 |
2000 |
2700 |
CD3 (T cells) |
66 |
76 |
1400 |
2000 |
CD4 (T-helpers) |
33 |
41 |
700 |
1100 |
CD8 (T-killers) |
27 |
35 |
600 |
900 |
CD4/CD8 |
1.0 |
1.4 |
- |
- |
CD16 (NK cells) |
9 |
16 |
200 |
300 |
CD20 (B lymphocytes) |
12 |
22 |
300 |
500 |
CD25 (IL-2 receptor) |
10 |
16 |
230 |
368 |
HLAII |
19.5 |
39 |
449 |
897 |
The number of lymphocytes and their subpopulations in the peripheral blood of a person aged 18-60 years
Indicators |
Relative, % |
Absolute, µl |
||
Minimum |
Maximum |
Minimum |
Maximum |
|
Leukocytes |
- |
- |
4000 |
8000 |
Lymphocytes |
28 |
39 |
1600 |
2400 |
CD3 (T cells) |
50 |
76 |
800 |
1216 |
CD4 (T-helpers) |
31 |
46 |
500 |
900 |
CD8 (T-killers) |
26 |
40 |
416 |
640 |
CD4/CD8 |
1.0 |
1.5 |
- |
- |
CD16 (NK cells) |
9 |
16 |
170 |
400 |
CD20 (B lymphocytes) |
11 |
16 |
200 |
400 |
CD25 (IL-2 receptor) |
13 |
24 |
208 |
576 |
HLA II |
19 |
30 |
340 |
720 |
CD95 |
5 |
7 |
90 |
112 |
The characteristics of the features of the immune response are largely determined by the ability of the cells involved to produce humoral communication and regulation substances - cytokines or interleukins. Several dozen such information and regulation molecules have already been identified and quantitatively studied in scientific research. In clinical immunology, the greatest importance is given to determining 10-15 biologically active substances of this group.
Naturally, in diagnostics, the research methods that carry the possibility of quantitative evaluation of the production of certain active molecules are of primary importance. This is achieved especially convincingly in reactions of stimulation or induced synthesis under standard conditions of lymphocyte culture.
[