Role of apoptosis in common variable immunodeficiency and selective immunoglobulin A deficiency

• B and T-cells from CVID patients undergo increased spontaneous apoptosis.
• The absence of several cytokines including IL-21, IL-4 and IL-10, and also some stimulus such as anti-CD40, CpG-ODN could be correlated with increased apoptosis in B and T-cells from CVID and SIgAD.
• B and T-cell subpopulations abnormalities may be because of increased apoptosis in lymphocytes from CVID and SIgAD patients.
• Knowing of apoptosis in CVID and SIgAD could shed a new light on the pathogenesis of CVID and SIgAD.

Common variable immunodeficiency (CVID) and selective IgA deficiency (SIgAD) are the most common primary immunodeficiencies in human. Both diseases share clinical manifestation and molecular defects. Increased apoptosis may be one of the mechanisms involved in the pathogenesis of CVID and SIgAD. Elevated apoptosis in this disorder leads to defective long-term survival of B-cells, reduced antibody production, decreased lymphocyte proliferation and defective cytokine secretion. For the first time, we reviewed the role of apoptosis in CVID and SIgAD.