SCIENTIFIC BACKGROUND

BLNK, BTK, CD79A, CD79B, IGHM, IGLL1, LRRC8A, PIK3R1

Category:

Congenital agammaglobulinemia is characterized by severely reduced or absent serum antibodies and severely reduced or absent circulating B cells, caused by an early maturation disorder of the B cells. Those affected develop severe, recurrent bacterial infections in the first years of life. A serious and not uncommon complication is enteroviral meningoencephalitis.

 

The only treatment currently available is intravenous or subcutaneous substitution of immunoglobulins.

 

The most common form of agammaglobulinemia is X-linked agammaglobulinemia (Bruton type), which is caused by mutations in the BTK gene and is present in about 85-95% of male patients. The rare autosomal inherited agammaglobulinemias can hardly be distinguished from the X-linked form by clinical symptoms and contribute to up to 15% of patients with agammaglobulinemia. Due to their genetic heterogeneity, analysis by NGS may be useful.

 

References

Bousfiha et al. 2018, J Clin Immunol 38:129 / Picard et al. 2018, J Clin Immunol 38:96 / Smith et al. 2016, GeneReviews® [Internet], https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK1453/ / Al-Herz et al. 2014, Front Immunol 5:162 / Bousfiha et al. 2013, J Clin Immunol 33:1078 / Conley 2009, Curr Opin Immunol 21:466 / Conley et al. 2005, Immunol Rev 203:216 / Conley et al. 1992, J Clin Immunol 12:139

 

GENES

BLNK, BTK, CD79A, CD79B, IGHM, IGLL1, LRRC8A, PIK3R1

ASSOCIATED TESTS

How to order

LATEST ARTICLES

A recent study highlights promising outcomes for BRCA variant carriers with breast cancer undergoing breast-conserving therapy. Analyzing 172 women, ...

Read more

Epidermolysis bullosa (EB), sometimes called butterfly skin, is a group of rare skin diseases with a common symptom: fragile skin that tears and blis...

Read more

In the rapidly evolving field of human genetics diagnostics, laboratories face the challenge of keeping up with the latest advancements in technology...

Read more

Medicine as we know it has been around for just over 100 years. Before this, alcohol and opium were the main forms of pain relief in Europe. The deve...

Read more

Below you can read the two winning essays from the second annual DNA essay competition. The subject of the essay was “Family history is one of the ...

Read more

Mosaicism is the presence of two or more genetically different sets of cells within the same person. It is a biological phenomenon that may have no e...

Read more

Cystic fibrosis (CF) is a life-threatening, progressive, inherited condition that causes severe damage to the body, mainly to organs of the respirato...

Read more

Cancer can sometimes run in families; in fact, it is estimated that 5-10% of all cancer cases are inherited. This includes up to 10% of breast cancer...

Read more

Mosaicism is a biological phenomenon in which a person has two or more genetically different sets of cells. Although mosaicism may have no effect, it...

Read more

Background information on in vitro diagnostic services Laboratory-based testing methods and medical devices play a critical role in diagnosis and ...

Read more