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Published on: December 9, 2014
A mutation in the promoter region of BTK causes atypical XLA
María Bravo García-Morato1,2, Lucía Del Pino Molina1,2, Juan Manuel Torres Canizales1,2
1Clinical Immunology Department, La Paz University Hospital and Lymphocyte Pathophysiology in Immunodeficiencies Group, La Paz Institute for Health Research (IdiPAZ), Madrid, Spain.
Abstract:
X-linked Agammaglobulinemia is a primary immunodeficiency caused by mutations in BTK, a tyrosine kinase essential for B lymphocytes differentiation. Patients usually have very low or absent B lymphocytes and are not able to develop humoral specific responses. Here we present a boy, diagnosed with XLA due to a mutation on the promoter region of the gene, whose phenotype is characterised by low percentage of B cells, hypogammaglobulinemia, oscillating neutropenia, antibodies responses to some antigens after vaccination and IgE-mediated allergy. Additional technology as flow cytometry was needed to demonstrate the pathological status of the variant. We focus on the idea that XLA should be suspected in males with B lymphopenia and hypogammaglobulinemia, even if they make humoral specific responses. We also highlight the importance of sequencing BTK's promoter region, as mutations on it can be disease-causing.

