I heard somebody say "congenital immune deficiency" today and was curious as to what it is?

Question

I know it has to do with the development of B cells which is why I asked the previous question.

Answer 1

Congenital immune deficiency, which is rare, results from improper lymphocyte development before birth. Depending on the stage of development of stem cells (B or T cells) during which the defect occurs, different diseases can result. For example, improper B-cell development can cause insufficiency or absence of antibodies in the blood. If stem cells are disrupted, a condition called severe combined immune deficiency (SCID) results. In most forms of SCID, humoral immunity and cell-mediated immunity are defective. Temporary immunity can be imparted to children with SCID by injecting them with a preparation of antibodies (gamma globulin). Bone marrow transplants, which replace the defecrive stem cells with healthy donor cells, ave proved effective in treating some cases of SCID. Advances in using gene therapy also have been made in treating SCID patients.

Answer 2

Congenital means present at birth. Actually, most congenital immune deficiencies are hereditary, some recessive, some X linked, and some dominant.

Bruton's Disease is a disorder of B cells with low gamma globulin. Swiss type agammaglobulinemia involves both B and T cells. But there are others, too, such as ataxia-telangectasia, Wiskott-Alldrich, cyclic neutropenia, leucocyte adhesion deficiency and a host of other problems.

Answer 3

Congenital means they were born with the problem rather than something you get from infection or injury. So this person was talking about an immune system that did not work properly because of something they were born with.

The opposite of congenital is acquired (as in Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome or AIDS)

Answer 4

It means that somewhere along the line the DNA has not provided for the ability for the body to develop the immune system independently. This is extremely dangerous for this individual, since the B cells are the foundation of the reactionary force that drive the body to activiate the immune system and combat any foreign bodies, hence why a cold doesn't kill you. It just makes you feel like crap for a week.
In the case of this person, they are in danger of actually becoming gravely ill if they do get a cold. The B cells are one of the bedrocks of the immune system.