SEVERE COMBINED IMMUNODEFICIENCY DUE TO A SPECIFIC DEFECT IN THE PRODUCTION OF INTERLEUKIN-2

SEVERE combined immunodeficiency (SCID) syndrome is caused by a group of genetic diseases characterized by abnormal function of T and B lymphocytes.1 SCID was first described in children with lymphopenia, agammaglobulinemia, and absent proliferative responses to T-lymphocyte mitogens, such as phytohemagglutinin. Since the original description of X-linked lymphopenic SCID (the so-called Swiss type of agammaglobulinemia), other children have been found to have SCID due to the absence of the enzyme adenosine deaminase, which is required for the development of T lymphocytes. Together, the X-linked and adenosine deaminase—deficient forms of SCID account for approximately 40 to 50 percent of all cases … © 1990, Massachusetts Medical Society. All rights reserved.