Erschienen in:
01.04.2020 | Original Article
T Cell Impairment Is Predictive for a Severe Clinical Course in NEMO Deficiency
verfasst von:
Stephanie Heller, Uwe Kölsch, Thomas Magg, Renate Krüger, Andrea Scheuern, Holm Schneider, Anna Eichinger, Volker Wahn, Nadine Unterwalder, Myriam Lorenz, Klaus Schwarz, Christian Meisel, Ansgar Schulz, Fabian Hauck, Horst von Bernuth
Erschienen in:
Journal of Clinical Immunology
|
Ausgabe 3/2020
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Abstract
Purpose
NEMO-deficient patients present with variable degrees of immunodeficiency. Accordingly, treatment ranges from antibiotic prophylaxis and/or IgG-substitution to allogenic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT). The correct estimation of the immunodeficiency is essential to avoid over- as well as under-treatment. We compare the immunological phenotype of a NEMO-deficient patient with a newly-described splice site mutation that causes truncation of the NEMO zinc-finger (ZF) domain and a severe clinical course with the immunological phenotype of three NEMO-deficient patients with missense mutations and milder clinical courses and all previously published patients.
Methods
Lymphocyte subsets, proliferation, and intracellular NEMO-expression were assessed by FACS. NF-κB signal transduction was determined by measuring IκBα-degradation and the production of cytokines upon stimulation with TNF-α, IL-1β, and TLR-agonists in immortalized fibroblasts and whole blood, respectively.
Results
The patient with truncated ZF-domain of NEMO showed low levels of IgM and IgG, reduced class-switched memory B cells, almost complete skewing towards naïve CD45RA+ T cells, impaired T cell proliferation as well as cytokine production upon stimulation with TNF-α, IL-1β, and TLR-agonists. He suffered from severe infections (sepsis, pneumonia, osteomyelitis) during infancy. In contrast, three patients with missense mutations in IKBKG presented neither skewing of T cells towards naïvety nor impaired T cell proliferation. They are stable on prophylactic IgG-substitution or even off any prophylactic treatment.
Conclusion
The loss of the ZF-domain and the impaired T cell proliferation accompanied by almost complete persistence of naïve T cells despite severe infections are suggestive for a profound immunodeficiency. Allogenic HSCT should be considered early for these patients before chronic sequelae occur.