Contractile Activity of Lymph Nodes in Young, Middle-Aged, and Old Rats.

We studied age-associated changes in contractile activity of isolated cervical and mesenteric lymph nodes in rats. In young and middle-aged rats, no significant changes in contractile activity of lymph nodes were revealed. In old rats, the amplitude of spontaneous contractions of lymph nodes was lower and their rate was higher than in young and middle-aged animals; the sensitivity of lymph nodes to vasoactive agents was reduced and the threshold of the response was higher in old rats.