Antigen receptor-mediated transmembrane signaling in Wiskott-Aldrich syndrome

The X-linked immunodeficiency Wiskott-Aldrich syndrome (WAS) is a condition that includes a deficient anti-polysaccharide Ab response. Recently, it has been suggested that B cells from patients with WAS show a defective calcium mobilization response upon engagement of sIgM. Because primarily EBV-transformed cells were used in these studies, we tested freshly isolated blood B cells for their calcium mobilization capability upon engagement of sIg and CD19. No significant differences in the calcium mobilization capability of CD20+ B cells of four individual WAS patients compared with capability in normal controls were found. Receptor desensitization as assessed by calcium mobilization inhibition also seemed to be intact. T cells were tested for their anti-CD3-induced calcium flux and, again, no abnormalities could be observed when compared with T cells from healthy individuals. We conclude that WAS B and T cells can be stimulated into a normal calcium mobilization response when their AgRs are cross-linked. It is highly improbable that the immune dysfunction observed in WAS patients is related to a direct disorder of their B and/or T cell AgRs.