• thymic dysplasia : any of a group of hereditary disorders, some transmitted as an autosomal recessive trait and others as an X-linked recessive trait, characterized by faulty development of the thymus, which may be associated with
• normal serum immunoglobulin levels and impaired cell-mediated immunity (Nezelof's syndrome)
• Swiss type agammaglobulinemia and impairment of both cell-mediated and humoral immunity
• variable deficiencies of immunoglobulins, the severity being dependent on the degree of the deficiency.
• combined immunodeficiencies (T and B lymphocytes)


• severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID) / Swiss type agammaglobulinemia / "bubble boy" disease or syndrome^ref

Epidemiology : 1 in 75,000 live births (1 in 100,000 live male births). SCID gained popular culture recognition in 1984 when media attention began to focus on an affected boy, David, who lived in a “bubble” designed to protect him from exposure to pathogens.
Varieties : the genetic defects that cause SCID have been identified in > 95% of cases. In all variants there is differentiation defect and a failure to produce T cells
Affected cell lines :
• B lymphocytes
• B cells⁺ (B⁺ SCID) (70%)
• T^-B⁺NK^- SCID :

Aetiology : autosomal recessive mutations in ZAP70 : profound depletion of peripheral CD8⁺ T cells. The absolute counts of CD4⁺ T cells are normal in these patients, although these cells have a defect of the CD3–TCR signal transduction pathway^{ref1, ref2, ref3}. Moreover, a defective expression of the PTK p56^Lck was recently shown in a SCID child who had also a selective loss of CD4⁺ T cells^ref.
• B cells^- (30%) : B-1 B cells survive thanks to autoreactivity (T-independence) while B-2 B cells die.
• genes are required for somatic V, D, and J rearrangements that encode the antigen-binding site of the pre-TcR and the mature TcR
• Omenn syndrome / familial reticuloendotheliosis with hypeosinophilia (20%)

Aetiology : hypomorphic mutations that impair but do not abolish the process of VDJ recombination, leading to the generation of autoreactive T cells with a highly restricted receptor repertoire => loss of central tolerance
• RAG1
• RAG2
• profound reduction in the levels of autoimmune regulator (AIRE) mRNA and protein in patients as compared with a normal control subject. Lack of AIRE was associated with normal or even increased levels of keratin and lymphotoxin-ß receptor mRNAs, while mRNAs of the self-antigens insulin, CYP1A2, and fatty acid–binding protein were undetectable in thymi from immunodeficiency patients. The few residual T cell clones that develop may escape negative selection and thereafter expand in the periphery, causing massive autoimmune reactions^ref
Symptoms & signs : putative autoimmune manifestations of the skin and gastrointestinal tract
• Athabascan, Athabaskan-type or radiosensitive SCID (RS-SCID)

Epidemiology : found among Athabascan-speaking Native Americans
Aetiology : loss of function mutations in Artemis, which associates with DNA-PK_cs
to form a complex that has hairpin-opening activity in NHEJ.
Symptoms & signs : after the appearance of lymphopenia during infancy, the children develop severe infections, and sometimes lymphomas
• NK cells
• NK cells⁺
• IL-7Ra^ref : lacking only mature T cells
• mutations in the gene for CD45 (< 1%)^{ref1, ref2} : lacking only mature T cells
• reticular dysgenesia
• veno-occlusive disease with immunodeficiency, an autosomal recessive disorder of severe hypogammaglobulinemia, combined T and B cell immunodeficiency, absent lymph node germinal centers, absent tissue plasma cells and hepatic veno-occlusive disease. This is the first report of the involvement of a nuclear body protein in a human primary immunodeficiency and of high-penetrance genetic mutations in hepatic veno-occlusive disease^ref
• autosomal recessive (40%)
• Omenn syndrome / familial reticuloendotheliosis with hypeosinophilia
• Athabascan, Athabaskan-type or radiosensitive SCID (RS-SCID)
• ADA-SCID (20%)

Aetiology : loss of function mutations in adenosine deaminase (ADA)
Therapy :
• PEG-ADA
• gene therapy
• DNA-PK_CS / XRCC7
• SCID1 (5%)

Aetiology : loss of function mutations in JAK3
• T^-B⁺NK⁺ SCID
• recessive X-linked SCID / SCIDX1 (50-60%)

Epidemiology : brought to the public's attention in a popular 1976 film called The Boy in the Plastic Bubble, starring John Travolta. He played David Vetter, a young man who spent his entire life in a sterilised environment. The real-life Vetter died in 1984.
Aetiology : loss of function mutations in CD132 / g_c (subunit of IL-2R, IL-4R, IL-7R, IL-9R and IL-15R and IL-21R) : normal or augmented B lymphocytes.
Therapy :
• gene therapy
• BMT from a histocompatible sibling. For the vast majority of children, however, an allogenic transplant is the best option, which carries a 5-year success rate of just 65%.
Web resources : X-linked SCID Mutation Database
• NK cells^-
• mutations in the genes for the CD3 complex :
• CD3d^ref
• CD3e^ref
• CD3g (milder immunodeficiencies^ref)
• CD3z chain of the pre-TcR complex^ref (< 1%) causes a block at the pre-TcR stage of development. It was associated with three somatic CD3 mutations, all located at the mutated codon 70 of the CD3 gene in the population with normal levels of the TcR–CD3 complex, which were obtained from 10% of the patient's T cells. The latter mutation (termed Q70X) reduced numbers of T cells and expression of the TcR. Furthermore, the mutation led to the deletion of the signaling portion of the molecule, resulting in impairment of the intracellular signaling needed to mount a response to antigens such as tetanus toxoid. In a fascinating twist, multiple somatic mutations in about 10% of the child's T cells had occurred at the same site (Q70) as the germ-line mutations in the z-chain gene. These cells expressed normal levels of the TcR and contributed to the residual response of the patient's immune system. The deficiency of the z chain seems to cause a less severe form of immunodeficiency than is caused by mutations in the CD3d or CD3e gene but a more severe form than is caused by mutations in the CD3g gene, which result in only a slight reduction in T-cell numbers and mild immunodeficiency
• T^-B⁺NK^- SCID :

Aetiology : autosomal recessive mutations in ZAP70 : profound depletion of peripheral CD8⁺ T cells. The absolute counts of CD4⁺ T cells are normal in these patients, although these cells have a defect of the CD3–TCR signal transduction pathway^{ref1, ref2, ref3}. Moreover, a defective expression of the PTK p56^Lck was recently shown in a SCID child who had also a selective loss of CD4⁺ T cells^ref.
Therapy :
• gene therapy
• BMT : a perfectly matched sibling donor is available in only 20% of cases, 1 in 4 transplantations fail and there can be both short- and long-term complications (including lymphoid malignancy) from this procedure.
Prognosis : without treatment, these babies die of infection within 6 to 12 months
Web resources : The SCID Homepage
• T cell primitive immunodeficiencies
• DiGeorge syndrome (DGS) / velocardiofacial syndrome (VCFS)
• T-cell immunodeficiency, congenital alopecia (nude syndrome) and nail dystrophy : WHN. See analogous disease in Mus musculus.
• TcR complex deficits
• deficit of CD3e
• deficit of CD3g
• bare lymphocyte syndrome (BLS) / MHC deficiency
• type I BLS / class I MHC deficiency

Aetiology :
• TAP2
• TAPBP / tapasin
Symptoms & signs : the syndrome resembles Wegener's granulomatosis both clinically and histologically. Patients have chronic necrotising granulomatous lesions in the upper respiratory tract and skin, recurrent infections of the respiratory tract, and skin vasculitis. A predominant NK population within the granulomatous lesions suggests that the pathophysiology of the skin lesions may relate to the inability of HLA class-I molecules to turn off NK cell responses. Accurate genetic analysis of a defined syndrome can provide a better understanding of the cause and pathogenesis of a disease^ref.
Laboratory examinations : reduced CD8⁺ T lymphocytes in peripheral blood; autoreactive NK cells and gd T lymphocytes in the peripheral blood^ref
• type II BLS / class II MHC deficiency

Aetiology :
• CIITA (complementation group A)
• RFX-B / RFXANK (complementation group B)
• RFX5 (complementation groups C and E)
• RFXAP (complementation group D)
Laboratory examinations : reduced CD4⁺ T lymphocytes in peripheral blood
• type III BLS : impaired expression of both class I and class II antigens

Laboratory examinations : reduced CD4⁺ and CD8⁺ T lymphocytes in peripheral blood
• selective T-cell defect (STD) : ZAP70
• purine nucleoside phosphorylase (PNP)deficiency
• Nezelof syndrome / cellular immunodeficiency with immunoglobulins : any of a heterogeneous group of immunodeficiency disorders characterized by profoundly deficient cellular immunity and varying degrees of humoral immunodeficiency. Immunoglobulin levels may be normal or increased, but antibody response to immunization may be absent. Patients are highly susceptible to life-threatening infections with low-grade or opportunistic pathogens, such as Candida albicans, Pneumocystis carinii, and cytomegalovirus. Both autosomal recessive and X-linked inheritance have been described
• immunodeficiencies impairing only B-cells


• hypogammaglobulinemia (< 70 mg/dl)
• physiologic hypogammaglobulinemia : a normal period of hypogammaglobulinemia seen in all infants at about 5–6 months of age as the level of transplacentally acquired maternal immunoglobulins declines before endogenous immunoglobulin synthesis rises to normal levels
Aetiology :
• mutations in genes involved in B-cell differentiation. Such genetic defects block the differentiation of immature B cells in bone marrow, thereby causing both a deficiency of mature B cells in the peripheral circulation and agammaglobulinemia
• X-linked agammaglobulinemia (XLA) occurs only in males
• Bruton agammaglobulinemia^{ref1, ref2, ref3}

Aetiology : sex-linked mutations in Bruton's tyrosine kinase (Btk)
Symptoms & signs : 25% develop cancer, mostly NHL and acute leukemia
• AGMX2

Aetiology : ?
• mutations that interfere with the pre-B-cell–receptor stage
• CD179b / l5 surrogate light chain deficiency^ref
• CD79a / Iga deficiency^ref
• Ig heavy chain deletion
• m heavy chain deficiency / autosomal recessive, non-Bruton-type agammaglobulinemia^ref
• g₁ heavy chain deficiency
• mutations in coreceptors :
• CD19 mutation resulted in the deletion of the signaling portion of the protein (frameshift mutations, causing premature stop codons that result in the deletion of the total cytoplasmic domain or a major part of the cytoplasmic domain), with normal numbers of B cells, able to undergo antigen-dependent differentiation, albeit with reduced efficiency, and impaired terminal differentiation of B cells into memory B cells and plasma cells^ref. Both truncations result in the lack of the 3 C-terminal tyrosine residues, 2 of which have been shown to be critical for signal transduction through CD19^ref. These mutations are not likely to be polymorphisms; CD19 is the most broadly used B-cell marker for flow-cytometric immunophenotyping of lymphocytes and has not been found to be lacking in large-scale studies of healthy children^{ref1, ref2}.
• BLNK^ref
• defects in the maturation process : there are mature B cells in blood and a deficiency of some, but not all, immunoglobulin classes (dysgammaglobulinemia) or hypogammaglobulinemia
• hypergammaglobulinemias
• hyper-IgM syndrome (HIGM) (> 280 mg/dl)

Aetiology : at least 5 genes, directly or indirectly involved in B-cell signaling via CD40 and required for class switch recombination (CSR) and somatic hypermutation (SHM), have been identified to cause HIGM if mutated.
• X-linked :
• HIGM1 (the most common) : CD154 / 40L / gp39 (Xq26) defects^{ref1, ref2, ref3, ref4, ref5, ref6}

Symptoms & signs : most CD40L-deficient patients present in infancy with severe recurrent sinopulmonary infections, Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia (PCP), chronic diarrhea due to Cryptosporidium infection that may lead to sclerosing cholangitis and intermittent or persistent neutropenia^{ref1, ref2, ref3, ref4, ref5, ref6}
Web resources : CD40Lbase
• HIGM4 : IKK-g (NEMO) gene (Xq28) : NEMO serves as a scaffold protein, forming a complex with IKK and IKK, 2 phosphokinases. Following CD40 crosslinking, NF-kB inhibiting protein (I-B) is phosphorylated, resulting in its degradation and the release of NF-kB, allowing its transfer from the cytoplasma to the nucleus. Mutations of NEMO block NF-kB release and thus interfere with NF-kB signaling. Male patients with mutations of NEMO may present with hypohidrotic (anhidrotic) ectodermal dysplasia (EDA) and immunodeficiency (ID)^{ref1, ref2, ref3}; some, but not all, have hypogammaglobulinemia with elevated IgM^ref
• autosomal recessive :
• HIGM2 : AID (12q13)

Symptoms & signs : patients with AID deficiency often have lymphoid hyperplasia, lack opportunistic infections, and generally have a better prognosis^{ref1, ref2}
• HIGM3 : CD40 (20q12-q13.2)^ref
• HIGM5 : uracil-DNA glycosylase (UNG) (12q24.1)^ref  is known to generate abasic sites within the variable Ig regions, a process required for efficient CSR and SHM^ref. UNG-deficient mice characteristically have defective CSR, SHM, and decreased deoxyguanine (dG) and deoxycytidine (dC) transversion^ref. Recently, 3 unrelated patients with autosomal recessive HIGM due to a mutation of UNG have been reported^ref
• other not yet identified^ref
Symptoms & signs : recurrent infections.
Laboratory examinations : low serum levels of IgG, IgA, normal or increased IgM, and grossly intact T-cell function
Prevention : preimplantation genetic diagnosis (PGD)
• hyper-IgE (HIE) syndrome (HIES) / hyperimmunoglobulin E recurrent infection syndrome / Buckley's syndrome : a primary immunodeficiency disorder characterized by recurrent staphylococcal abscesses of skin, lungs, joints, and other sites, pruritic dermatitis, very high serum IgE levels (> 0.025 mg/dl or > 150 E/l), normal levels of IgG, IgA, and IgM, blood and sputum eosinophilia, low anamnestic antibody responses to booster immunization, and poor antibody and cell-mediated responses to neoantigens
• Job's syndrome : an autosomal recessive disorder of neutrophils, characterized by the presence of abnormal or absent chemotactic responses, which leads to repeated development of cold staphylococcal abscesses and eczema, and by hyperimmunoglobulinemia E. It is usually associated with red hair and fair skin. Most cases reported have been in girls.
• common variable immunodeficiency (CVID) / acquired hypogammaglobulinemia

Epidemiology : onset before age 40; prevalence of about 1 in 50 000
Aetiology : 20% have dominant heredity
• 90% of cases are unexplained
• in 10% of cases familiarity exists
• homozygous null mutations in ICOS ( 2q33) (< 5%) on activated T cells may result in an adult onset form of CVID with autosomal recessive inheritance (AR-CVID). T cells from these individuals were normal with regard to subset distribution, activation, cytokine production and proliferation. In contrast, naive, switched and memory B cells were reduced^ref => panhypogammaglobulinemia. Worldwide, there are a total of 9 patients diagnosed with ICOS deficiency most likely due to a common founder. ICOS-L deficiency could not be identified in families with AR-CVID^ref. Marked defects in CSR and germinal center formation were observed in ICOS and ICOSL (B7-H2) knockout mice^{ref1, ref2}. These findings in mice and the recent discovery of homozygous mutations of ICOS in adult patients with common variable immunodeficiency (CVID) phenotype^ref make this receptor/ligand pair candidate genes for patients with the HIGM phenotype. Recurrent bacterial infections, adult as well as childhood onset, splenomegaly, autoimmune phenomena (autoimmune neutropenia), intestinal lymphoid hyperplasia, and malignancy (carcinoma of the vulva). The severe reduction of class-switched memory B cells resulted from poor germinal center formation in the absence of ICOS. The additional decrease of naive B cells was associated with a partial inhibition of the early B-cell development at the pre-B-I stage. T-cell homeostasis seemed not to be affected, but low IL-10 production by ICOS-deficient T cells may contribute to the disturbed germinal center reaction^ref
• homozygous and heterozygous mutations in TNFRSF13B / TACI. Homozygosity with respect to mutations causing the amino acid substitutions S144X and C104R abrogated APRIL binding and resulted in loss of TACI function, as evidenced by impaired proliferative response to IgM-APRIL costimulation and defective class switch recombination induced by IL-10 and APRIL or BAFF. Family members heterozygous with respect to the C104R mutation and individuals with sporadic common variable immunodeficiency who were heterozygous with respect to the amino acid substitutions A181E, S194X and R202H had humoral immunodeficiency. Although signs of autoimmunity and lymphoproliferation are evident, the human phenotype differs from that of the Tnfrsf13b^-/- mouse model^{ref1, ref2}.
• BAFF-R^ref
• a susceptibility locus exists in the class III MHC region
• an HIGM/CVID phenotype has also been observed in subsets of male patients with mutations of Btk or SAP/SH2D1A^{ref1, ref2}, the genes responsible for X-linked agammaglobulinemia (XLA) and X-linked lymphoproliferative disease (XLP), respectively
• approximately 20% of patients with hypogammaglobulinemia and major histocompatibility complex class II (MHCII) deficiency and a subset of patients with ataxia telangiectasia (AT) have elevated serum IgM levels. These disorders, however, can be recognized by experienced clinicians and confirmed by simple laboratory tests; for example, lack of MHCII molecules on the surface of B cells or elevated a-fetoprotein in the serum of patients with AT. However, in a considerable proportion of patients with the HIGM phenotype, the molecular defect remains unknown^ref
Pathogenesis : disturbed T, NK and B-cell function^ref => decreased serum IgG and IgA levels and generally decreased serum IgM, low CD19 and CD4^ref subsets, high serum IL-4 and IL-6^ref, reduced sCD23^ref. B cells from patients with CVI have impaired capacity to differentiate into Ig-secreting cells in response to IL-10 and anti-CD40 MoAbs, and that this unresponsiveness can be restored by exogenous IL-4 in a proportion of the patients^ref. Pax5 gene expression is not detected at baseline but can be induced by IL-2, IL-10 and anti-CD40 mAb^ref. There is a dramatic reduction in Ig V gene SHM with 40-75% of IgG transcripts totally devoid of mutations in the circulating memory B cell compartment^ref. Deficiency of somatic hypermutation of IgG transcripts is a better predictor of severe respiratory tract infections than lack of memory B cells^ref. Decrease in L-selectin⁺ T lymphocytes^ref. Defective surface expression of attractin on T cells^ref. Impaired bone marrow clonogenic capability, cytokine production, and thymic output^ref. T and B lymphocyte abnormalities are age-dependent and mutually related^ref : CD8⁺HLA-DR⁺ T lymphocytes are increased in patients with impaired memory B-cell differentiation^ref.
Symptoms & signs : protean manifestations, and as a result diagnosis is often delayed until the second or third decade, with resultant irreversible organ damage, in particular bronchiectasis
• furunculosis^ref, recurrent respiratory (Haemophilus spp., Streptococcus pneumoniae, HHV-3 / VZV) and gastrointestinal infections
• 20-30% of the patients develops additional autoimmune phenomena (autoimmune hemolytic anemia, idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura, rheumatoid arthritis, celiac disease)
• non-Hodgkin lymphomas and adenocarcinomas
• lack of antibody production in response to vaccination
Laboratory examinations :
• Piqueras classification^ref :
• group MB2 (19%) with normal memory B cells
• group MB1 (33%) with defective switched memory (IgD^-CD27⁺) but normal nonswitched memory B cells (IgD⁺CD27⁺)
• group MB0 (47%) with almost no memory B cells
• Warnatz classification^ref :
• CVID type I (77%) : class switched memory B cells (CD19⁺27⁺IgD^-IgM^-IgG⁺ or IgA⁺) in their peripheral blood < 0.4% : intrinsic signalling or expression defect for CD70/CD86 at the level of naive B cells^ref
• CVID type II (23%)  : class switched memory B cells (CD19⁺27⁺IgD^-IgM^-IgG⁺ or IgA⁺) in their peripheral blood > 0.4%
• the size of the peripheral CD19^hiCD2^lo/neg B cell pool as a marker for CVID patients with autoimmune cytopenia and splenomegaly^ref
Therapy :  3-4-weekly infusions of IVIg
Prognosis : the occurrence of granulomatous inflammation is associated with a worse prognosis compared with common variable immunodeficiency patients without granuloma
• dysgammaglobulinemia / specific antibody deficiency (SAD) : imbalance of isotypes
• IgA deficiency (IgAD)

Epidemiology : is the most common form of primary immunodeficiency and affects approximately 1 of every 600 Caucasian / European individuals and 1 of every 18,500 Japanese individuals.
Aetiology :
• intrinsic : polygenic inheritance
• IGAD1 in the class III MHC locus
• mutations in TNFRSF13B, encoding TACI^ref
• HLA-A1
• HLA-A28
• HLA-B8
• HLA-B14
• HLA-B44
• HLA-DR3
• HLA-DR1
• HLA-DR7
• combinations reflected extended, conserved, or ancestral haplotypes
• HLA-A1-B8-DR3 (the most common haplotype associated with IgAD in Caucasians)
• HLA-A28-B14-DR1
• HLA-B44-DR7
• telomeric part of MHC class III region
• telomeric part of the MHC class II region
In Spanish white IgAD patients, HLA-DR1 and HLA-DR7 are even more frequent than HLA-DR3, reflecting the distribution of HLA-DR alleles and extended haplotypes in southern Europe, where HLA-DRB1*0102 (carried on the B14-DR1 haplotype) and DR7 are more frequent than in northern Europe and the U.S.. Studies performed in Italy have also shown the DRB1*0102 allele and the B14-DR1 extended haplotype as the most frequently associated with IgAD patients in their population.
• extrinsic :
• intrauterine infections
• Toxoplasma gondii
• rubella virus
• HHV-5 / CMV
• drugs
• phenytoin / diphenylidantoin
• D-penicillamine
Pathogenesis : patients are predisposed to chronic respiratory and gastrointestinal infections, allergic bronchial asthma, autoimmune diseases (celiac disease, rheumatoid arthritis, systemic lupus erythematosus, autoimmune thyroid diseases), and non-Hodgkin lymphomas, but some are asymptomatic. The overall incidence of concomitant IgG subclass deficiency found in the IgA deficient group was 18.5%. MBL deficiency was found to be 3.7%
Symptoms & signs : the most common clinical manifestations of antibody deficiency syndromes are repeated and prolonged infections usually involving the respiratory system. Thus, rhinosinusitis, bronchitis, asthma, bronchiectasis, and pneumonia are all well recognized. Patients with Ig deficiencies may also have radiologic and/or functional evidence of interstitial lung disease (ILD), but their frequency and type are incompletely appreciated. Several histologic patterns have been reported in the lungs of patients with CVID, including lymphocytic interstitial pneumonitis (LIP)^ref, granulomatous interstitial pneumonitis^{ref1, ref2}, bronchiolitis obliterans organizing pneumonia (BOOP)^ref, and usual interstitial pneumonitis (UIP)^ref. For the most part, these descriptions come from small series or individual case reports^{ref1, ref2} that are difficult to interpret. Severe infections are more common in patients with combined deficiencies, either IgA and any of the IgG subclasses or IgA and MBL deficiency^ref. Selective IgA deficiency rarely leads to destructive lung disease, unless there is an associated IgG subclass deficiency, especially of IgG₂^ref : ILD leading to restrictive ventilatory abnormality occurs in 20-30% of patients with symptomatic Ig deficiency^ref
Laboratory examinations : [IgA]_serum < 5 mg / dL.
Therapy : symptomatic ; patients need to be followed up regularly as some of them ultimately develop a CVID^ref. Maintenance prophylactic antibiotic or IVIg replacement (if even IgG₂ and IgG₄ subclasses are deficient) is beneficial, but there is a risk of anaphylactic reaction to the latter due to the inherent presence of anti-IgA in some of these patients^ref.
Prognosis : may progress to IgG deficiency^ref and CVID^ref
• selective deficiency of IgG subclasses (with or without IgA deficiency)
• selective IgG₁ deficiency
• selective IgG₂ deficiency

Aetiology : an A-->G transition in the fourth nucleotide in the 5' portion of intron 1 inactivates the normal splice site, and instead, a cryptic splice site in the C_H1 exon is used in RNA post-transcriptional processing, leading to a 16 bp deletion of the g₂ C_H1 exon^ref
• selective IgG₃ deficiency
• antibody deficiency with normal immunoglobulins
• transient hypogammaglobulinemia of infancy : prolongation of the normal physiologic hypogammaglobulinemia of infancy caused by delayed development of endogenous immunoglobulin production and associated with increased susceptibility to infections.
In patients with idiopathic humoral immunodeficiencies, assessment of B cell switching more accurately predicts clinical prognosis than either classification of patients into SAD and CVID or serum immunoglobulin concentrations^ref.
Summary of alterations :

	IgD (n.v. 0.3-14 mg/dl)	IgM (40-280 mg/dl)	IgG (700-1600 mg/dl)	IgA (70-400 mg/dl)	IgE (< 0.025 mg/dl or < 150 E/l)
hyper-IgM	?	+/=	-	-	=
hyper-IgE	?	=	=	=	+
CVID	?	-	-	-	-
IgAD	?	?	?	-	?
IgG deficiency	=	=	-	=	=
liver cirrhosis	?	?	?	+	?

• other well-defined immunodeficiencies syndromes
• IFNGR1 or IFNGR2 deficiency
• IL-12Rb₁ deficiency

Pathogenesis : disseminated infections from BCG and minor Salmonella spp.
• IRAK4 deficiency

Symptoms : recurrent infections caused by pyogenic bacteria
• spindle cell thymoma-associated immunodeficiency
• Wiskott-Aldrich syndrome (WAS) : X-linked immunodeficiency syndrome (Wiskott A. Familiarer, angeborenen Morbus Werhoffi? Monatschr. Kinderheilk. 68:212-216 (1937); Aldrich RA, Steinberg AG & Campbell DC. Pedigree demonstrating a sex-linked recessive condition characterized by draining ears, eczematoid dermatitis and bloody diarrhea. Pediatrics 13:133-138 (1954))

Aetiology : mutations inWASp
Pathogenesis : inability to produce antibodies to polysaccharide antigens and increased susceptibility to infection with encapsulated bacteria (Haemophilus influenzae, meningococcus, pneumococcus)
Symptoms & signs : hypereosinophilia, eczema, thrombocytopenia, and recurrent pyogenic infections. Increased risk for non-Hodgkin's lymphomas
Laboratory examinations : IgM is low and IgA and IgE are elevated; cutaneous anergy is common.
Treatment : gene therapy.
• ataxia teleangiectasia
• X-linked lymphoproliferative (XLP) disease (XLPD) or syndrome / Duncan disease / Purtilo syndrome^ref

Aetiology : mutations in SAP / SH2D1A, an adaptor that associates with SLAM family receptors and enables tyrosine phosphorylation signaling by these receptors through SAP-mediated recruitment of Src-related kinase Fyn.
Pathogenesis : a functional SAP/Fyn pathway may be required for the efficient recruitment of PKC-q and BCL10, as well as proper patterns of activation of NF-kB1/p50 and T_h2 polarization of activated T lymphocytes^{ref1, ref2}
Symptoms & signs : > 50% of patients suffer from an extreme susceptibility to HHV-4 / EBV. 33% of these patients, however, develop dysgammaglobulenemia without an episode of severe mononucleosis. In SH2D1A^-/- mice, both primary and secondary responses of all Ig subclasses are severely impaired in response to specific antigens. Because GCs were absent in SH2D1A^-/- mice upon primary immunization, and because SH2D1A was detectable in wt germinal center B cells, it was examined whether SH2D1A^-/- B cell functions were impaired. Using the adoptive cotransfer of B lymphocytes from hapten-primed SH2D1A^-/- mice with CD4⁺ T cells from primed wt mice into irradiated wt mice provided evidence that signal transduction events controlled by SH2D1A are essential for B cell activities resulting in antigen specific IgG production. Defects in naïve SH2D1A^-/- B cells became evident upon cotransfer with nonprimed wt CD4⁺ cells into Rag2^-/- recipients. Thus, both defective T and B cells exist in the absence of SH2D1A, which may explain the progressive dysgammaglobulinemia in a subset of XLPD patients without involvement of EBV. Patients exposed to EBV have a severe and often fatal massive proliferation of abnormal T lymphocytes and decreased humoral responses. Those individuals who survive the EBV infection have a significant risk of developing lymphomas^ref. It is unclear which aspects of XLP disease are specific to herpesvirus infection and which reflect general immunological functions performed by SAP. SAP^- mice were examined during a chronic LCMV infection, specifically to address the question: which SAP-deficiency immunological problems are general, and which are EBV-specific? Illness, weight loss, and prolonged viral replication were much more severe in SAP^- mice. Aggressive immunopathology was observed. This inability to control chronic LCMV was associated with both CD8⁺ T cell and B cell response defects. Importantly, SAP^- CD8⁺ T cells are the primary cause of the immunopathology and clinical illness, as depletion of CD8 T cells blocked disease^ref.
• immunodeficiencies secondary or associated with other diseases
• chromosomal instability and repair defects
• Bloom syndrome
• Fanconi anemia
• immunodeficiency-centromeric instabilities-facial anomalies (ICF) syndrome
• Nijmegen breakage syndrome (NBS)
• Seckel syndrome
• xeroderma pigmentosum (XP)
• chromosomal defects
• Down syndrome
• Turner syndrome
• rings or deletions in chromosome 18 (18p- and 18q-)
• skeletal anomalies
• dwarfism with short limbs (short-limbed skeletal dysplasia)
• cartilage and hair hypoplasia (chondroplasia of metaphyses)
• immune deficiency with generalized growth retard
• Schimke-type immunoosseous dysplasia
• Dubowitz syndrome
• kyphomelic dysplasia with SCID
• Mulibrey dwarfism
• growth retardation, facial anomalies and immune deficiency
• progeria (Hutchinson-Gilford syndrome)
• immune deficiency with dermatological defects
• ectodermal dysplasia-ectrodactyly
• immune deficiency with lack of toes (pseudoainhum), and congenital deafness and ichthyosis
• partial albinism and immunodeficiency syndrome
• congenital dyskeratosis
• Netherton syndrome
• anhidrotic ectodermal dysplasia with immune deficiency (AED-ID), either X-linked recessive or autosomal dominant, is caused by hypomorphic mutations in NEMO or hypermorphic mutation in IKBA, respectively, both involved in NF-kB activation. These patients present with abnormal development of ectoderm-derived structures and suffer from a broad spectrum of infectious diseases. In vitro studies of the patients' cells showed an impaired, but not abolished, NF-kB activation in response to a large set of stimuli, including TLR agonists. More recently, patients with autosomal recessive amorphic mutations in IRAK4 have been reported, presenting no developmental defect and a more restricted spectrum of infectious diseases, mostly caused by pyogenic encapsulated bacteria, principally, but not exclusively Gram-positive. In vitro studies carried out with these patients' cells showed a specific impairment of the IRAK signalling pathway. NFkB- and MAPK pathways are impaired in response to all TIR agonists tested. These data, therefore, suggest that TLRs play a critical role in host defence against pyogenic bacteria, but may be dispensable or redundant for immunity to most other infectious agents in humans^ref
• Papillon-Lefèvre syndrome
• congenital ichthyosis
• inherited metabolic defects
• acrodermatitis enteropathica : Zn malabsorption or deficitary intake
• transcobalamine 2 deficit
• type II hereditary oroticaciduria
• immunodeficiency with untreatable diarrhoea, abnormal facies and trichorrhexis
• methylmalonic acidemia
• multiple biotin-dependent carboxylase deficit (MCD) : holocarboxylase synthetase
• mannosidosis
• type 1b glycogenosis
• Chediak-Higashi syndrome (CHS) : reduced NK response
• Griscelli syndrome / hypopigmentation-immunodeficiency disease : an albinoidism of autosomal recessive inheritance, marked by hypomelanosis, frequent pyogenic infection, hepatosplenomegaly, neutro- and thrombopenia, and possible immunodeficiency
• hypercatabolism of immune globulins
• familial hypercatabolic hypoproteinemia
• intestinal lymphangiectasia
• others
• Ivemark syndrome
• congenital or hereditary hypo- or asplenia
• impairing complement
• classical activation pathway (=> decrease of CH₅₀)
• C1q deficiency

Aetiology : point mutations
Symptoms : immune complex syndrome, infections from pyogenic capsulated Bacteria (i.e. not subjected to non-immune phagocytosis; e.g. Streptococcus pneumoniae, Haemophilus influenzae)
• C1r deficiency

Aetiology : ?
Symptoms :  immune complex syndrome, infections from pyogenic capsulated Bacteria (i.e. not subjected to non-immune phagocytosis; e.g. Streptococcus pneumoniae, Haemophilus influenzae)
• C1s deficiency

Aetiology : point mutations
Symptoms :  immune complex syndrome, infections from pyogenic capsulated Bacteria (i.e. not subjected to non-immune phagocytosis; e.g. Streptococcus pneumoniae, Haemophilus influenzae)
• C4A / B deficiency

Aetiology :
• 1. complete gene deletion
• 2. gene conversion (isotype change)
• 3. nonexpression due to 2-bp insertion >> stop codon
Symptoms : SSPE (C4A Q0), autoimmune diseases (SLE, PBC, AIH, SSc), infections from pyogenic capsulated Bacteria (i.e. not subjected to non-immune phagocytosis; e.g. Streptococcus pneumoniae, Haemophilus influenzae)
• C2 deficiency (C2D)

Aetiology :
• type I C2D : G954T transversion, 28-bp deletion at exon/intron junction 6 (linked to HLA-A25, HLA-B18, HLA-C2Q0, HLA-C4A4,B2, HLA-DR2) => MaeII RFLP and E298D mutation => splicing error => no synthesis
• type II C2D : G392A transition => C111Y mutation => impaired secretion
Symptoms : immune complex syndrome (membranoproliferative glomerulonephritis), rarely with infections from pyogenic capsulated Bacteria (i.e. not subjected to non-immune phagocytosis; e.g. Streptococcus pneumoniae, Haemophilus influenzae, Neisseria spp.)
• C1 INH deficiency => Quincke's hereditary angioneurotic edema (HANE)

Aetiology : various point mutations and small deletions, exon deletions due to Alu repeat recombinations
• type 1 (HAE I) : loss of gene expression (80%)
• type 2 (HAE II) : loss of function (20%)
• type 3 (HAE III) : albumin-bound C1-INH protein without functional activity, which can be differentiated from the C1-INH protein of HAE II by electrophoresis
• type 4 ( HAE IV)
Symptoms : angioedema, rare immune complex diseases, rarely with infections from pyogenic capsulated Bacteria (i.e. not subjected to non-immune phagocytosis; e.g. Streptococcus pneumoniae, Haemophilus influenzae)
Therapy : attenuated androgens, fibrinolytic drugs
• alternative activation pathway (=> decreased AP₅₀)
• factor B deficiency

Aetiology : n.d., only heterozygotes detected
Symptoms : clinically inapparent
• factor D deficiency

Aetiology : unknown
Symptoms : infections from pyogenic capsulated Bacteria (i.e. not subjected to non-immune phagocytosis)
• properdin deficiency

Aetiology : various point mutations causing stop codons, frame shifts and amino acid substitutions
Symptoms : fulminant infections from Neisseria spp., sepsis
• factor I deficiency

Aetiology : Alu repeat-induced mutation
Symptoms : meningitis, infections from pyogenic capsulated Bacteria (i.e. not subjected to non-immune phagocytosis; e.g. Streptococcus pneumoniae, Haemophilus influenzae)
• factor H deficiency

Aetiology : 4-bp deletion >> stop codon, point mutations >> Cys substitutions (impaired secretion), stop codon
Symptoms : HUS, Neisseria spp. infections, glomerulonephritis
• C8BP, CD55 / decay accelerating factor (DAF), and CD59 / MIRL / protectin / HRF-20 / MACIF GPI anchor defect in paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria (PNH)
• CD11bCD18 / a_Mb₂ integrin / Mac1 / CR3 deficiency (and LFA-1, gp150,95)

Aetiology : deficiency of common b chain LCAM-B
Symptoms : recurrent bacterial skin infections
• C3

Aetiology : various independent point mutations; 800bp deletion due to Alu repeat-induced mutation
Symptoms : immune complex syndrome (glomerulonephritis), infections from pyogenic capsulated Bacteria (i.e. not subjected to non-immune phagocytosis; e.g. Streptococcus pneumoniae, Haemophilus influenzae)
• common lytic pathway (=> decrease of CH₅₀ and AP₅₀)
• C5

Aetiology : point mutation >> stop codon
Symptoms : relapsing infections from Neisseria spp., immune complex syndrome
• C6

Aetiology : partial deficiency: splice site mutation >> loss of exons 16 & 17 (3' truncation)
Symptoms : relapsing infections from Neisseria spp., immune complex syndrome
• C7

Aetiology : various independent point mutations and 1-bp deletions >> stop codons, substitutions, splice site mutations; deletion of exons 7 and 8
Symptoms : relapsing infections from Neisseria spp., immune complex syndrome
• C8

Aetiology :
• C8A gene :
• C8B gene : point mutation in exon 9 >> stop codon (common); also other rare mutations
Symptoms : relapsing infections from Neisseria spp., immune complex syndrome
• C9

Aetiology : point mutations >> stop codon, Cys substitution
Symptoms : rare infections from Neisseria spp.

• Australian primary immune deficiency Yahoo group
• Primary Immunodeficiency Association (PIA)

• type 1 (APS1 / PGA-1)) / autoimmune polyendocrinopathy-candidiasis-ectodermal dystrophy (APECED)

Epidemiology : 15-45 cases every 10⁶ people; in childhood.
Aetiology : autosomal recessive inheritance due to loss-of-function mutations in autoimmune regulator (AIRE). AIRE is involved in the ectopic expression of organ-specific antigens by medullary thymic epithelial cells (mTEC) during negative selection of T lymphocytes : the absence of AIRE results in the decreased expression of 100-300 genes and the 30 genes that are down-regulated to the greatest extent encode mainly tissue-specific proteins, several of which are known to be target of autoimmunity in patients with APS1, such as insulin, cytochrome P450 family members, and U2AF1.
Symptoms :
• endocrine disorders
• in early childhood
• mucocutaneous candidiasis from Candida spp. (chiefly Candida albicans) before age 5 (75%)
• associated endocrinopathies
• autoimmune Addison's disease before age 15 (60%)
• hypoparathyroidism before age 10 (89%)
• premature ovarian failure (POF) (45%)
• Hashimoto's thyroiditis (12%)
• type-1 diabetes mellitus (1%)
• nonendocrine disorders
• celiac disease (25%)
• alopecia areata or totalis (20%)
• pernicious anemia due to type A gastritis (16%)
• autoimmune hepatitis (AIH) (9% : anti-CYP1A2)
• vitiligo (autoantigens : SOX9 and SOX10) (4%)
• type 2 (APS2 / PGA-2) / Schmidt's syndrome

Epidemiology: 1 case every 25,000 people ; in adulthood
Aetiology : polygenic autosomal dominant inheritance associated with HLA-DR3, HLA-B8 and HLA-DQ (HLA-DQA1*0301);  viral infection triggering the disease process
Symptoms & signs :
• endocrine disorders
• autoimmune Addison's disease (100%)
• autoimmune thyroid disease (AITD) (70%)
• type-1 diabetes mellitus (50%)
• premature ovarian failure (POF) (1-50%)
• nonendocrine disorders
• vitiligo (autoantigens : SOX9 and SOX10) (4%)
• others (1%)
• myasthenia gravis
• alopecia areata or totalis
• pernicious anemia due to type A gastritis
• thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura
• rheumatoid arthritis
• type 3 (PGA3 / APS3)

Aetiology : HLA-DQA1*0301
Symptoms & signs :
• autoimmune thyroid disease (AITD) (the most frequent disease)
• one other organ-specific autoimmune disorder other than autoimmune Addison's disease
• type 4 (PGA4 / APS4)

Symptoms & signs :
• autoimmune Addison's disease
• other autoimmune diseases excluding autoimmune thyroid disease (AITD) and type-1 diabetes mellitus

• Canale-Smith syndrome (CSS)

Epidemiology : approximately 70 known cases described worldwide
Aetiology : germline mutations in the CD95 / Fas / Apo-1 gene^ref
Pathogenesis : defective apoptosis in activated lymphocytes; may develop into lymphoproliferative disease after early exposure to HHV-4 / EBV
Symptoms & signs : congenital massive lymphadenitis, hepatomegaly, splenomegaly and systemic autoimmunity to erythrocytes and platelets (in the latter case, autoantibodies have the same specificity than in idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura)
Laboratory examinations : increased number of double negative T cells (DNTs) CD3⁺CD57⁺CD4^-CD8^-, usually ab-TcR, rarely gd-TcR^ref
Therapy : autoimmune cytopenias are difficult to treat; in a case report thrombocytopenia resistant to conventional therapy but which responded to a combination of rituximab and vincristine^ref. Rapamycin has been shown to induce apoptosis in normal and malignant lymphocytes. Since ALPS is caused by defective lymphocyte apoptosis, we hypothesized rapamycin would be effective in treating ALPS. This hypothesis was tested using rapamycin in murine models of ALPS. Treatment response was followed with serial assessment of DNTs by flow cytometry in blood and lymphoid tissue, by serial monitoring of lymph node and spleen size with ultrasonography, and by ELISA for anti-dsDNA antibodies. Three-dimensional ultrasound measurements in the mice correlated to actual tissue measurements at sacrifice (r=0.9648). We found a dramatic and statistically significant decrease in DNTs, lymphadenopathy, splenomegaly, and autoantibodies after only 4 weeks when comparing rapamycin treated mice to control. Rapamycin induced apoptosis through the intrinsic mitochondrial pathway. Rapamycin was compared to mycophenolate mofetil, a second-line agent used to treat ALPS, and found rapamycin's control of lymphoproliferation was superior^ref
• type II autoimmune lymphoproliferative syndrome

Aetiology : mutations in caspase 10.

hereditary periodic fever syndromes / hereditary autoinflammatory disorders are a group of systemic disorders characterized by recurrent attacks of systemic inflammation (autoinflammation) without infectious or autoimmune cause, resulting from a defect of the innate immune response^ref (Kastner DL, Aksentijevich I. Intermittent and periodic arthritis syndromes. In: Koopman WJ, Moreland LW, eds. Arthritis and Allied Conditions (15th ed). Philadelphia: Lippincott Williams and Wilkins; 2005:1411–1461), initially described as affecting primarily the serosal and synovial surfaces and the skin, but now recognized to include a somewhat broader distribution of affected tissues. The hereditary periodic fevers differ from autoimmune diseases such as systemic lupus erythematosus and rheumatoid arthritis in that they lack high-titer autoantibodies or antigen-specific T-cells; they are termed autoinflammatory diseases to highlight this distinction

• hyper-IgD syndrome (HIDS) / Dutch type periodic fever

Epidemiology : first described in the Netherlands and still diagnosed most often in Northern Europeans^ref
Aetiology : specific autosomal recessive mutations in the gene encoding mevalonate kinase (MVK) on chromosome 12q24, resulting in depressed enzymatic activity. Different mutations in the same enzyme cause mevalonic aciduria, characterized by psychomotor retardation, cerebellar ataxia, recurrent fever attacks, and death in early childhood. Adults with phenotypic overlap between these 2 syndromes have been identified, which argues for a continuous spectrum of disease^ref
Symptoms & signs : recurrent fever, increased serum IgD (normal value < 100 U/ml) and generalized inflammation (lymphadenopathy, arthralgias/arthritis, abdominal complaints, skin rash, and headache). The attacks persist during the entire life although frequency and severity tend to diminish with age. Attacks often begin during the first year of life, lasting 3–7 days, and are sometimes triggered by childhood immunizations. Concomitant findings may include headache, abdominal pain, prominent cervical lymphadenopathy, polyarthralgia or polyarticular arthritis, diffuse maculopapular rash, and aphthous ulcerations^ref.
Laboratory examinations : as in FMF and TRAPS, HIDS attacks are accompanied by leukocytosis and elevated acute-phase reactants. Serum polyclonal IgD levels are also elevated in most HIDS patients, regardless of whether they are experiencing an attack, but do not correlate with disease severity, either over time for any given patient or when comparing patients. Increased serum IgD levels have also been observed in the minority of patients with FMF^ref and TRAPS^{ref1, ref2}, but the magnitude is usually much less in these latter 2 conditions. In contrast with FMF or TRAPS, systemic amyloidosis is extremely rare in HIDS, although it has been reported^ref.
Pathogenesis : in 1999 2 groups, using complementing positional and functional approaches, identified HIDS-associated mutations in MVK, an eleven-exon gene on chromosome 12q that encodes the mevalonate kinase (MK) enzyme^{ref1, ref2}. MK catalyzes the conversion of mevalonic acid to 5-phospho-mevalonic acid in the synthesis of a number of important molecules, including cholesterol, vitamin D, bile acids, steroid hormones, and nonsterol isoprenoids. HIDS-associated mutations leave some residual enzymatic activity, while more profound mutations in MVK that totally ablate enzymatic activity cause mevalonic aciduria, a rare condition manifesting not only periodic fevers but also a number of other severe developmental abnormalities. Currently over 35 HIDS-associated mutations have been described^ref, and they are distributed throughout the 396 aa MK protein. The mutations associated with mevalonic aciduria cluster around the active sites of the enzyme^{ref1, ref2}. Recognition of the molecular genetic basis of HIDS permits the use of genetic testing and/or screening for urinary mevalonate (during attacks) to help establish the diagnosis. This is especially helpful in the minority of patients with borderline or normal serum IgD levels. In vitro studies suggest that HIDS-mutant MK functions best at 30°C, with progressive decreases in function at 37°C and 39°C^ref. This observation may account for the association of HIDS attacks with immunizations and infections, and may also explain the increased urinary mevalonate levels observed during HIDS attacks. It is unlikely that IgD plays a primary role in the pathogenesis of HIDS, given the poor correlation of IgD levels with disease severity, and the identification of occasional patients with the HIDS phenotype and MVK mutations but persistently normal IgD levels^{ref1, ref2, ref3}. Diminished cholesterol biosynthesis also appears an unlikely mechanism of disease, since HIDS patients generally have low-normal serum cholesterol levels, and more severe disorders of cholesterol synthesis do not exhibit a HIDS-like phenotype. Instead, current thinking on the pathogenesis of HIDS focuses either on the accumulation of mevalonic acid or the shortage of isoprenoids. Favoring the latter hypothesis are in vitro data demonstrating accentuated IL-1ß secretion by leukocytes from HIDS patients that can be reversed by the addition of farnesol or geranyl-geraniol^ref. Possibly, the small guanoside triphosphate-binding proteins, which undergo farnesylation or geranylation, may be the link between the mevalonate pathway and the innate immune system^ref
Therapy : there are currently no established therapies for HIDS, although TNF inhibition and HMG-CoA reductase inhibitors^ref are investigational (Kastner DL, Aksentijevich I. Intermittent and periodic arthritis syndromes. In: Koopman WJ, Moreland LW, eds. Arthritis and Allied Conditions (15th ed). Philadelphia: Lippincott Williams and Wilkins; 2005:1411–1461)
• cryopryinopathies are a spectrum of clinical disorders caused by mutations in CIAS1^{ref1, ref2, ref3, ref4}, a 9-exon gene on chromosome 1q44 encoding a protein that has variously been denoted NALP3 / CIAS1 / PYPAF1 / CATERPILLER 1.1 / cryopyrin. Although a number of overlap syndromes have been described, three relatively distinct clinical disorders are recognized: familial cold autoinflammatory syndrome (FCAS), Muckle-Wells syndrome (MWS), and neonatal-onset multisystem inflammatory disease (NOMID, also known as chronic infantile neurologic cutaneous and arthropathy [CINCA] syndrome). An urticaria-like rash is common to all of the cryopyrinopathies and is characterized histologically by infiltrates of lymphocytes and neutrophils rather than mast cells, indicating that it is not true urticaria. FCAS is characterized by episodes of fever, urticaria-like rash, and polyarthralgia, usually precipitated by generalized exposure to the cold and lasting about 12 hours. In MWS, attacks are not usually precipitated by cold exposure but include the same urticaria-like rash as well as fever, malaise, limb pain, and, at times, abdominal pain, conjunctivitis, and arthralgia. Sensorineural hearing loss and/or systemic AA amyloidosis may also develop. Patients with NOMID/CINCA, the most severe of the cryopyrinopathies, often exhibit nearly continuous disease activity that fluctuates in severity. In addition to the fevers, arthralgia, hearing loss, and amyloidosis seen in MWS, patients with NOMID/CINCA often develop a deforming arthropathy and central nervous system involvement that can include chronic aseptic meningitis, intellectual impairment, and loss of vision. Eosinophilia or coagulopathy can also be seen in some patients with NOMID/CINCA. The full-length cryopyrin/NALP3 protein is 920 aa in length, and consists of 3 major domains: an N-terminal PYRIN domain (aa 13–83) similar to the N-terminal domain of pyrin, a central NACHT domain (aa 217–513) that appears to be important both in intra- and inter-molecular interactions, and a C-terminal tandem array of 7 leucine rich repeats (LRR, aa 697–920). Nearly all of the > 40 known mutations in cryopyrin^ref are missense substitutions in the NACHT domain, encoded by exon 3 of CIAS1. Cryopyrin/NALP3 has been shown to play an important role in the regulation of IL-1ß activation through its participation in a macromolecular complex denoted the NALP3 inflammasome^ref. In addition to cryopyrin/NALP3, this complex includes ASC, caspase-1 (which cleaves pro-IL-1ß to produce biologically active IL-1ß), and Cardinal, a caspase-recruitment domain-containing protein. The NALP3 inflammasome is a potent activator of IL-1ß, and macrophages from patients with MWS spontaneously secrete active IL-1ß. Through its LRR, cryopyrin/NALP3 binds muramyl dipeptide^ref, a component of the bacterial cell wall, an event that increases inflammasome activity. Moreover, this process appears to be accentuated in the macrophages of patients with MWS.


Activation of IL-1ß through the cryopyrin/NALP3 inflammasome. On the lower left, the major domain structure of cryopyrin is depicted. Interaction of cryopyrin with muramyl dipeptide (MDP) is thought to activate cryopyrin and allow it to interact with the other components of the inflammasome. In the upper left, activated cryopyrin binds ASC through cognate PYRIN-PYRIN domain interactions. ASC, in turn, binds caspase-1 through homotypic interactions of their caspase recruitment (CARD) domains (upper right). This complex then binds Cardinal, which has recruited a second caspase-1 molecule. The full assembly of this macromolecular complex, the inflammasome, induces proximity of the catalytic domains of the 2 caspase-1 molecules, leading to autocatalysis. The released catalytic domains are then available to activate pro-IL-1ß to its biologically active form, which mediates fever and inflammation. Abbreviations: PYD, PYRIN domain; NACHT, the nucleotide-binding domain of cryopyrin; LRR, leucine-rich repeat; FIIND, a domain of Cardinal that interacts with cryopyrin; CARD, caspase-recruitment domain. The newly recognized role of cryopyrin/NALP3 in IL-1ß activation has provided the conceptual basis for a series of studies establishing an important role for IL-1ß inhibition in the cryopryinopathies. In one protocol, pretreatment with the IL-1ß receptor antagonist anakinra effectively prevented clinical symptoms or acute-phase elevations in patients with FCAS exposed to cold temperatures^ref. Anakinra also induced a complete remission of clinical symptoms and biochemical changes in MWS^{ref1, ref2}. Most recently, in a series of 18 patients with NOMID/CINCA, anakinra doses of 1–2 mg/kg/d resulted in a resolution of uveitis, rash, and fever and a significant decline in cerebrospinal fluid pressure^ref. These results will not only dramatically improve the quality of life and prognosis of patients with a potentially devastating disease, but will provide powerful support for a model that places cryopyrin/NALP3 at a critical juncture in the regulation of IL-1ß activation.
• familial cold urticaria (FCU) / familial cold autoinflammatory syndrome (FCAS)
• Muckle-Wells syndrome (MWS) / urticaria-deafness-amyloidosi (UDA) syndrome

Pathogenesis : constitutive activation of NALP3 inflammasome => monocytes isolated from a patient produce IL-1b even in absence of stimulation, whereas monocytes from healthy individuals only produce it after activation with LPS^ref
Symptoms & signs : amyloidosis involving the kidneys and causing nephritis, recurrent urticaria, deafness, and pain in the extremities.
• chronic infantile neurologic, cutaneous and articular (CINCA) syndrome / neonatal-onset multisystem inflammatory disease (NOMID)
• familial Mediterranean fever (FMF) / benign paroxysmal peritonitis / periodic peritonitis / familial recurrent polyserositis / periodic or recurrent polyserositis

Epidemiology : Mediterranean area, primarily among persons of Sephardic Jewish, Armenian, Turkish, Arab, and Italian ancestry, but, with the availability of genetic testing, cases have been documented worldwide; onset is usually between the ages of 5 and 15 years.
Aetiology : recessive mutation in marenostrin / pyrin (MEFV)gene. The gene for FMF, MEFV, is located on human chromosome 16p13.3 and was independently identified by two positional cloning consortia in 1997^{ref1, ref2}. MEFV is comprised of 10 exons, spanning approximately 15 kb of genomic DNA. All 4 of the initial FMF-associated mutations in MEFV were in exon 10, and even now, with > 55 mutations having been identified^ref, exon 10 remains the major site of mutations, with a smaller cluster in exon 2. The most frequent are M694V, M694I, M680I, V726A and E148Q. The M694V mutation is the most frequent mutation in the various ethnic groups considered, although its frequency varies from group to group. The V726A mutation is observed mainly among Ashkenazi and Iraqi Jews, Druzes and Armenians, and the M680I among Armenians and Turks. M694I and A744S seem specific to Arab populations, and R761H is frequently found in Lebanese FMF patients. The M694V mutation is often correlated with severe phenotypes, mainly in the homozygous state. It has been specifically correlated with arthritis, pleuritis and especially amyloidosis. Patients with other mutations in the 694 and 680 codons can also have severe phenotypes. The V726A mutation, although identified in FMF patients with a relatively mild phenotype, has also been detected in patients with renal amyloidosis. E148Q is often associated with a mild phenotype, and whether it is even a polymorphism has been questioned^ref. Nearly all of the known FMF-associated mutations encode conservative missense changes. This suggests that the disease phenotype may require some level of residual protein function and that the episodic nature of FMF may be due to as yet uncharacterized environmental perturbations of the variant protein. Carrier frequencies for FMF mutations of 1:3 to 1:5 have been observed in several Mediterranean and Middle Eastern populations^{ref1, ref2, ref3,}