Professional Documents
Culture Documents
12 Immunodeficiency Disorders
12 Immunodeficiency Disorders
IMMUNODEFICIENCY
● Autoimmunity – system attacks host cells and tissues
● Immunodeficiency – system fails to protect
○ Primary immunodeficiency
■ Genetic or developmental defect
■ Caused by defects in virtually any
gene involved in immune
development or function, innate or
adaptive, humoral, or cell mediated,
plus genes not previously
associated with immunity
○ Secondary immunodeficiency
■ Acquired immunodeficiency
■ Loss of immune function that results
from exposure to an external agent,
often an infection
PRIMARY IMMUNODEFICIENCIES
● Most of these disorders are caused by defects in a
single gene, and are extremely rare
● Vary in severity from mild to nearly fatal
● Loosely categorized as affecting either innate immunity
or adaptive responses and are often grouped by the
specific components of the immune system most SEVERE COMBINED IMMUNODEFICIENCY
affected ● The most severe forms of CID
*the earlier the mutation, the more severe the manifestation of ● These stem from genetic defects that lead to a virtual
the disease and most likely fatal or absolute lack of functional T cells in the
periphery
● Usually fatal at early years of life
○ Infant will have viral and fungal infections
○ Bacteria don’t show up until later because of
placental transfer of Abs from mother
○ Chronic diarrhea, pneumonia, lesions
● Many genetic defects can contribute to SCID
○ Usually defects that target the early steps of
hematopoiesis
● Molecular mechanisms that explain the occurrence of
SCID
○ Defective cytokine signaling in T cell
precursors, caused by mutations in certain
cytokines, cytokine receptors, or regulatory
molecules that control their expression
*cytokines are needed for immune cells to
mature
○ Premature death of the lymphoid lineage
due to accumulation of toxic metabolites
caused by defects in the purine metabolism
pathways
○ Defective V(D)J rearrangement in
developing lymphocytes, caused by
● Combined immunodeficiency
mutations in the genes for RAG1 and RAG2,
○ Diseases resulting from an absence of T cells
or other proteins involved in the
or significantly impaired T cell function,
rearrangement process
combined with some disruption of antibody
○ Disruptions in pre-TCR or TCR signaling
responses
during development, caused by mutations in
● B-cell immunodeficiency
tyrosine kinases, adapter molecules,
○ Range from absence of B cells, plasma cells,
downstream messengers, or transcription
immunoglobulins to absence of only certain
factors involved in TCR signaling
classes of Abs
○ Subject to bacterial infection but do well
against viral since T-cell branch is okay
● T-cell immunodeficiency
○ Can affect both humoral and cell mediated
● Primary immunodeficiencies are often detected early
in life
*can manifest after birth or as early as 6 months
1
WISKOTT-ALDRICH SYNDROME
● Adenosine deaminase (ADA) deficiency ● X-linked disorder
○ ADA catalyzes conversion of adenosine or ○ Results in issues with cytoskeleton
deoxyadenosine to inosine or deoxyinosine, components in hematopoietic cells
respectively ● Clinical manifestations usually appear early in the first
*these purines need to be metabolized or else year of life, eczema and thrombocytopenia are both
they will be accumulated and eventually common
become toxic *if platelet count is low, patient is prone to bleeding
○ Intracellular accumulation of toxic ● Humoral defects, including lower than normal levels
adenosine metabolites, which interferes of IgM, as well as impaired cell-mediated immunity,
with purine metabolism and DNA synthesis are also common features
● Reticular dysgenesis (RD) ● WAS patients often experience recurrent bacterial
○ Initial stages of hematopoietic stem cell infections, especially by encapsulated
development are blocked by defects in the ● Treated with passive antibodies or stem cell
adenylate kinase 2 gene (AK2), favoring transfer
apoptosis of myeloid and lymphoid ● Can result in fatal infection or lymphoid malignancy
precursors and resulting in severe
reductions in circulating leukocytes X-LINKED HYPER-IGM SYNDROME
● Deficiency of IgG, IgE, and IgA but elevated levels of
IgM
MHC DEFECTS
● A failure to express MHC molecules can lead to ● Defect in T cell surface CD40L
general failures of immunity that resemble SCID ○ This is needed for interaction between TH and
without directly impacting lymphocytes themselves B cell for class switching for T dependent
● Bare-lymphocyte syndrome antigens
○ Caused by mutation in the TAP genes which ○ T independent antigens are not affected
are vital to antigen processing and therefore there is production of IgM
presentation by class I MHC molecules
○ Failure to train T cells correctly, it affects both
B and T cells
DIGEORGE SYNDROME
● Decreased or absent thymus
● Results from deletion of region on chromosome 22
in developing embryo, developmental anomaly
● Lowered T cell numbers, results in B cells not
producing sufficient antibodies
● DGS patients present with symptoms of
immunodeficiency, hypoparathyroidism, and
congenital heart anomalies HYPER-IGE SYNDROME (JOB SYNDROME)
● Caused by an autosomal dominant mutation in the
STAT3 gene
○ Its absence is thought to lead dysregulation of
TH pathway development and may be the
reason for overproduction of IgE
○ Depressed TH17 responses, which are
important for clearance of fungal and
extracellular bacterial infections, explain the
susceptibility of these patients to C. albicans
and S. aureus
● Skin abscesses, pneumonia, eczema, and facial
abnormalities
● High # of eosinophils and IgE
○ But don’t show increased allergies
2
X-LINKED AGAMMAGLOBULINEMIA
● Bruton’s agammaglobulinemia
● Caused by a defect in Bruton’s tyrosine kinase,
which is required for signal transduction through the
BCR
○ B lymphocytes in these patients remain in
the pre-B stage, with heavy chains
rearranged but light chains in their germ-line
configuration
● Low levels of IgG and absence of other classes
● Recurrent bacterial infections
3
associated with increased risk of infection ● gp120 determines viral tropism by binding to target cell
with species of Neisseria receptors, while gp41 mediates fusion between viral
■ These types of bacterial infection are and cellular membranes
also more common in those with *the cost of attachment (gp120) is always greater than the cost
defects in C5-C9 of fusion/penetration (gp41)
○ Defects in mannose binding lectin (MBL) ● Recognizes CD4 antigen on T cell
result in an increased susceptibility to a
variety of infections by bacterial or fungal
agents
*patients are prone to meningitis
SEVERE MALNUTRITION
● Affects both innate and adaptive immunity
● Sustained periods with very low protein-calorie
diets (hypoproteinemia) are associated with
depression in T-cell numbers and function, although
deleterious b cell effects may take longer to appear
● Insufficiency in micronutrients, such as zinc, ascorbic
acid, likely contributes to the general
immunodeficiency and increases susceptibility to
opportunistic infection
HIV
● Retrovirus (Lentavirus genus)
*army that reverse transcribe its RNA to DNA and will be
incorporated in the host’s DNA
● Viral envelope derives from host
○ Can have class I or class II MHC