Active clinical trials for "Immunologic Deficiency Syndromes"

This study will try to identify mutations in the genes responsible for primary immunodeficiency disorders (inherited diseases of the immune system) and evaluate the course of these diseases in patients over time to learn more about the medical problems they cause. The immune system is composed of various cells (e.g., T and B cells and phagocytes) and other substances (complement system) that protect the body from infections and cancer. Abnormalities in the gene(s) responsible for the function of these components can lead to serious infections and other immune problems. Patients with Wiskott-Aldrich syndrome, adenosine deaminase (ADA) deficiency. Participants will undergo a medical and family history, physical examination, and additional procedures and tests that may include the following: Blood tests for: routine laboratory studies (i.e. cell counts, enzyme levels, electrolytes, etc.); HIV testing; immune response to various substances; genetic testing; and establishment of cell lines to maintain a supply of cells for continued study Urine and saliva tests for biochemical studies Skin tests to assess response to antigens such as the viruses and bacteria responsible for tetanus, candida, tuberculosis, diphtheria, chicken pox, and other diseases. Skin and lymph node biopsies for tissue and DNA studies Chest X-ray, CT scans, or both to look for cancer or various infections. Pulmonary function test to assess lung capacity and a breath test to test for H. pylori infection. Dental, skin and eye examinations. Treatment with intravenous immunoglobulins or antibodies to prevent infections. Apheresis for collecting white blood cells to study cell function. In this procedure, whole blood is collected through a needle placed in an arm vein. The blood circulates through a machine that separates it into its components. The white cells are then removed, and the red cells, platelets and plasma are returned to the body, either through the same needle or through a second needle placed in the other arm. Bone marrow sampling to study the disease. A small amount of marrow from the hipbone is drawn (aspirated) through a needle. The procedure can be done under local anesthesia or light sedation. Placental and umbilical cord blood studies, if cord blood is available, to study stem cells (cells that form blood cells). Information gained from this study may provide a better understanding of primary immunodeficiencies, leading to better diagnosis and treatment. In addition, study participants may receive medical and genetic counseling and may be found eligible for other NIH studies on these diseases.

Severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID) is a rare disease caused by a group of genetic disorders that leads to early death from recurrent infections in affected children.The only curative therapy for SCID is allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation.Unrelated umbilical cord blood(UCB) is increasingly used as an alternative to bone marrow.

Pneumonia mortality rates in African countries like Malawi are high and increased further in children -exposed or infected with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) as well as those that are severely malnourished or severely hypoxemic. Treatment innovations are needed. Bubble continuous positive airway pressure (bCPAP) improves oxygenation and ventilation and is a simple, relatively inexpensive adaptation of conventional continuous positive airway pressure potentially suitable for low-resource settings. bCPAP has been demonstrated to improve outcomes in neonates less than 1 month of age. Recently, a limited number of hospitals are using bCPAP to escalate pneumonia care for older African children failing standard treatment with antibiotics and oxygen. Supportive evidence for this approach is observational only. Quality randomized studies comparing bCPAP versus a standard-of-care control group that includes low-flow oxygen therapy and using a primary endpoint of mortality are not available in low-resource settings including high prevalence HIV countries like Malawi. Demonstrating a mortality benefit with bCPAP is needed to support further investment and scale up of bCPAP in the care of older Malawian children 1-59 months of age with World Health Organization (WHO) severe pneumonia complicated by HIV and/or malnutrition or severe hypoxemia. With the full support of the Malawi Ministry of Health and in collaboration with external experts from Lilongwe Medical Relief Trust and Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center investigators plan to address this critical evidence gap by conducting a randomized controlled study determining bCPAP outcomes, compared to the currently recommended standard of care endorsed by the WHO and Malawi national pneumonia guidelines, in hospitalized Malawian children with WHO-defined severe pneumonia complicated by a co-morbidity ((1) HIV-infection, (2) HIV-exposure without infection, (3) severely malnourished) or WHO pneumonia with severe hypoxemia and without a co-morbidity. The investigators hypothesize that bCPAP will reduce the mortality of Malawian children with WHO-defined severe pneumonia.

The goal of this study is to develop a novel approach to hematopoietic stem cell transplantation for children with Severe Combined Immunodeficiency Disease (SCID) that eliminates the use of toxic chemotherapy conditioning and maximizes the likelihood of T and B cell immune reconstitution. Rather than classic chemotherapeutic agents, the investigators will utilize a targeted stem cell mobilizer, plerixafor, in combination with alemtuzumab, a monoclonal antibody. Correlative scientific questions will include: 1) efficacy and characteristics of host stem cell mobilization; and 2) alemtuzumab pharmacokinetics in very young children.

The ideal anti-HIV medications for patients with advanced HIV disease is unknown. There is evidence that anti-HIV regimens that contain protease inhibitors can enhance immune function better than regimens that do not contain protease inhibitors. This is a study that will determine the difference in immune enhancement capabilities between an anti-HIV regimen that contains the protease inhibitor - lopinavir-ritonavir, and a regimen that contains efavirenz. Both medications are recommended as first line treatments for HIV-infected patients. This study will recruit HIV-positive patients that need to start anti-HIV treatment because their CD4+ T-cells are below 200. The usual threshold for starting treatment is a CD4+ T-cell less than 350. Subjects will be randomized to treatment with either an anti-HIV regimen that contains lopinavir-ritonavir or a regimen that contains efavirenz. The study will determine the difference in immune reconstitution over 24 weeks of treatment with study medications. Among the immune parameters that will be measured is the ability of each subject to respond to vaccination with the tetanus-diphtheria vaccine and the 23-valent pneumococcal vaccine. Both vaccines are also recommended for HIV-positive patients but HIV-positive patients tend to have a lower response rate to these vaccines.

This study will evaluate the safety and effectiveness of insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) to treat patients with X-linked severe combined immunodeficiency (XSCID). Those who have XSCID lack white blood cells that protect their bodies from invasion by all types of germs. IGF-1 is the main hormone responsible for the body's growth and metabolism. As a medication, IGF-1 is Increlex[(Trademark)] (mecasermin), Patients ages 2 to 20 who have not yet begun puberty, have a diagnosis of XSCID, and are shorter than the 3rd percentile for their age may be eligible for this study. This study will last about 3 years, and patients' visits will be scheduled at 3-month intervals. Patients will have a physical history and exam, X-rays, electrocardiogram, blood tests, and body measurements. Patients will take estradiol orally for 2 days, to help avoid false results of growth hormone (GH) levels in blood samples. Then provocation testing is done, with two tests back to back. It determines blood levels of GH and the body's response to testing with drugs called arginine and clonidine. Patients are admitted to the pediatric inpatient unit and will have an intravenous (IV) line placed in the arm. Arginine is given by IV over 30 minutes, and blood samples are taken. Right after arginine testing, the clonidine tablet is given. The IGF-1 generation test is then done to see if the body makes IGF-1 as a product in response to injections of GH for 5 consecutive days. This test does not require that patients are inpatients, but after Day 8, patients must be admitted to the pediatric unit to have blood sampling, start Increlex injections, and start close monitoring of blood sugar levels. They will learn how to do a self-injection and follow other advice. They will complete records about the injection site, symptoms, and side effects-keeping records for at least the first 2 days after going home, with each dose change, and as needed. Patients stick their fingertip and place a small drop of blood on a blood sugar monitoring strip. The strip is put into a glucometer-a small hand-held device to measure the blood sugar level. Patients will be instructed to always have a source of sugar available in case blood sugar is too low. ...

This study will evaluate immune function in people with a known or suspected immune disorder. It will determine participants immune response to vaccines by measuring blood antibody levels after vaccination. Patients enrolled in a NIH protocol involving immune reconstitution (bone marrow transplantation or gene therapy) for a known or suspected primary immune disorder may be eligible for this study. Participants may be asked to have more than one vaccine, based on their age, use of IVIG, past immunization history and underlying immune problem. The possible vaccinations include: Rabies vaccine Diphtheria and tetanus booster 23 valent pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccine Pneumococcal 7-valent conjugate vaccine The diphtheria, tetanus, pneumococcus and rabies vaccines are approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and used routinely to protect against disease. Study participants will have a blood sample drawn before vaccination. The number of additional samples collected will vary according to the vaccines administered; 1 for rabies; 1 for tetanus; and 1 to 2 for the pneumococcal vaccines. Each sample will be up to 5 teaspoonfuls. Participation in the study may last up to a year, depending on the blood sampling scheduling

This study will examine the safety and effectiveness of ranitidine (Zantac) in patients with Hyper-IgE recurrent infection syndrome, a disease characterized by recurrent infections of the ears, sinuses, lungs and skin, and abnormal levels of the antibody immunoglobulin E (IgE). Patients age 2 and older who have Hyper-IgE recurrent infection syndrome and who have had chronic or frequent infections in the last 12 months may be eligible for this study. Participants are randomly assigned to take ranitidine or placebo in pill or liquid form twice a day for 12 months. In addition to treatment, patients undergo the following procedures during visits scheduled on day 0 of the study (baseline) and at 3, 12, 15 and 24 months. Evaluations at 6, 9, 18 and 21 months are by telephone. Medical history and physical examination - baseline and 3 and 24 months. Clinical severity score - baseline and 3, 6, 9, 12, 15, 18, 21 and 24 months. Dermatology exam - baseline and 3, 12, 15 and 24 months. Pulmonary function test - baseline and 12 and 24 months. Chest CT - baseline and 12 and 24 months. Quality of life assessment - baseline and 3, 12, 15 and 24 months. Pregnancy testing - baseline and 3, 12, 15 and 24 months. HIV test - baseline and 12 and 24 months. Contraception evaluation - baseline and 3, 6, 9, 12, 15, 18, 21 and 24 months. Missed school/work days assessment - baseline and 3, 12, 15 and 24 months. Medication adherence - baseline and 3, 6, 9, 12, 15, 18, 21 and 24 months. In addition to the above procedures, participants who are not enrolled in study 00-I-0159 have a baseline scoliosis series and genetic consult.

This study is to discover whether children with severe combined immunodeficiency disease (SCID) or other primary immunodeficiency disorder (PID) for which no satisfactory treatment other than stem cell transplantation (SCT) exists can be safely and effectively transplanted from HLA mismatched (up to one haplotype) related donors or unrelated matched or mismatched (up to one antigen) donors, when leukocytolytic monoclonal antibodies (MAb) and Fludarabine are the sole conditioning agents. Three monoclonal antibodies will be used in combination. Two of them are rat IgG1 (immunoglobulin G1) antibodies directed against two contiguous epitopes on the CD45 (common leucocyte) antigen. They have been safely administered as part of the conditioning regimen for 12 patients receiving allografts (HLA matched and mismatched) at this center. They produce a transient depletion of >90% circulating leucocytes. The third MAb is Campath 1H, a humanized rat anti-CD52 MAb. Campath 1H, Alemtuzumab, has been licensed to treat B-cell chronic lymphocytic leukemia (B-CLL) and more recently has been safely given at this and other centers as part of a sub-ablative conditioning regimen to patients with malignant disease. Because these MAb produce both profound immunosuppression and significant, though transient, myelodestruction we believe they may be useful as the sole conditioning regimen in patients with SCID, in whom the use of conventional chemotherapeutic agents for conditioning may produce or aggravate unacceptable and even lethal short term toxicity. We anticipate MAb mediated subablative conditioning will permit engraftment in a high percentage of these patients with little or no immediate or long term toxicity. Campath IH persists in vivo for several days after administration and so will be present over the transplant period to deplete donor T cells as partial GvHD prophylaxis. Additional Graft versus Host Disease (GvHD) prophylaxis may be provided by administration of FK506.

HIV related cognitive impairment still occurs despite highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART). HIV disease affects the brain in 20-40% of patients with advancing HIV disease leading to varying degrees of cognitive impairment, recently termed HIV associated neurocognitive disorders (HAND). HAND may occur in patients who are virally suppressed in both blood and CSF. Patients with HIV Associated Neurological Disorders (HAND) who are virally suppressed in both their blood and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), whilst on a highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) regimen may have significant cognitive improvement with HAART intensification with the medication Raltegravir; compared to those who remain on their existing regimen. This study will be a prospective, interventional, randomised and unblinded controlled clinical trial. The aim of this study will be to determine whether HAART intensification with the medication Raltegravir, leads to significant improvement in HIV associated neurological disorders (HAND). Patients with the recent progression (within 6 months) of HAND (validated by neuropsychological assessment) on HAART who are virally suppressed (<50 copies per ml) in blood and CSF will be randomised to have their existing HAART regimen intensified with raltegravir 400mg twice daily, or not. The control arm will remain on their medication regimen as prescribed. The target is to enrol 110 patients into the control group, and 110 patients into the Raltegravir intensification group. Patients will undergo baseline neuropsychological testing, MRI, blood tests, and cerebral spinal fluid (CSF) tests (via a lumbar puncture). The methods used to determine the effectiveness of adding Raltegravir, will include further neuropsychological testing at 6 months; and neuropsychological testing, MRI and CSF assessment at 12 months. Neuropsychological testing completed at 6 and 12 months will be completed by a "blind assessor", in that they will have no knowledge of which arm (treatment or control) the participant is enrolled in. An evaluation (neuropsychological testing) will be performed should the patient deteriorate during the course of the study, as recognised by the patient's managing physician. The decision of the Antiretroviral medication regimen to be used in such a case will be determined by the managing physician. At the end of the study protocol (12 months) the patient's HAART therapy will be managed by their primary physician.