Severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID, pronounced “skid”) is a rare, fatal syndrome of diverse genetic cause in which there is combined absence of T- lymphocyte and B-lymphocyte function (and in many cases also natural killer, or NK lymphocyte function). These defects lead to extreme susceptibility to serious infections. There are currently twelve known genetic causes of SCID. Although they vary with respect to the specific defect that causes the immunodeficiency, some of their laboratory findings and their pattern of inheritance, these all have severe deficiencies in both T cell and B cell function.
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