Home | Help | Feedback | Subscriptions | Archive | Search | Table of Contents

This Article Full Text Full Text (PDF, 758K) PPT slides of all figures Alert me when this article is cited Citation Map Services Email this article Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new content in the JEM Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via CrossRef Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Casanova, J.-L. Articles by Abel, L. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Casanova, J.-L. Articles by Abel, L. Social Bookmarking                      What's this?

Jean-Laurent Casanova^a,b and Laurent Abel^a,b

^a J.-L.C. is at the Laboratory of Human Genetics of Infectious Diseases, University of Paris René Descartes-INSERM U550, Necker Medical School, and Pediatric Hematology-Immunology Unit, Department of Pediatrics, Necker Enfants Malades Hospital, 75015 Paris, France.
^b L.A. is at the Laboratory of Human Genetics of Infectious Diseases, University of Paris René Descartes-INSERM U550, Necker Medical School, 75015 Paris, France.

CORRESPONDENCE J.-L.C.: casanova{at}necker.fr

Abstract
The immune system's function is to protect against microorganisms, but infection is nonetheless the most frequent cause of death in human history. Until the last century, life expectancy was only 25 years. Recent increases in human life span primarily reflect the development of hygiene, vaccines, and anti-infectious drugs, rather than the adjustment of our immune system to coevolving microbes by natural selection. We argue here that most individuals retain a natural vulnerability to infectious diseases, reflecting a great diversity of inborn errors of immunity.

CiteULike

Complore

Connotea

Del.icio.us

Digg

Reddit

Technorati

This article has been cited by other articles:

• Wunderink, R. G. (2008). Another Piece of the Community-Acquired Pneumonia Puzzle. Chest 134: 1112-1114 [Full Text]  
• van der Eijk, E. A., van de Vosse, E., Vandenbroucke, J. P., van Dissel, J. T. (2007). Heredity versus Environment in Tuberculosis in Twins: The 1950s United Kingdom Prophit Survey Simonds and Comstock Revisited. Am. J. Respir. Crit. Care Med. 176: 1281-1288 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Ku, C.-L., von Bernuth, H., Picard, C., Zhang, S.-Y., Chang, H.-H., Yang, K., Chrabieh, M., Issekutz, A. C., Cunningham, C. K., Gallin, J., Holland, S. M., Roifman, C., Ehl, S., Smart, J., Tang, M., Barrat, F. J., Levy, O., McDonald, D., Day-Good, N. K., Miller, R., Takada, H., Hara, T., Al-Hajjar, S., Al-Ghonaium, A., Speert, D., Sanlaville, D., Li, X., Geissmann, F., Vivier, E., Marodi, L., Garty, B.-Z., Chapel, H., Rodriguez-Gallego, C., Bossuyt, X., Abel, L., Puel, A., Casanova, J.-L. (2007). Selective predisposition to bacterial infections in IRAK-4 deficient children: IRAK-4 dependent TLRs are otherwise redundant in protective immunity. JEM 204: 2407-2422 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Casanova, J.-L., Abel, L. (2007). Primary Immunodeficiencies: A Field in Its Infancy. Science 317: 617-619 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Recio, M. J., Moreno-Pelayo, M. A., Kilic, S. S., Guardo, A. C., Sanal, O., Allende, L. M., Perez-Flores, V., Mencia, A., Modamio-Hoybjor, S., Seoane, E., Regueiro, J. R. (2007). Differential Biological Role of CD3 Chains Revealed by Human Immunodeficiencies. J. Immunol. 178: 2556-2564 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Bustamante, J., Picard, C., Fieschi, C., Filipe-Santos, O., Feinberg, J., Perronne, C., Chapgier, A., de Beaucoudrey, L., Vogt, G., Sanlaville, D., Lemainque, A., Emile, J.-F., Abel, L., Casanova, J.-L. (2007). A novel X-linked recessive form of Mendelian susceptibility to mycobaterial disease. J. Med. Genet. 44: e65-e65 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Ku, C.-L., Picard, C., Erdos, M., Jeurissen, A., Bustamante, J., Puel, A., von Bernuth, H., Filipe-Santos, O., Chang, H.-H., Lawrence, T., Raes, M., Marodi, L., Bossuyt, X., Casanova, J.-L. (2007). IRAK4 and NEMO mutations in otherwise healthy children with recurrent invasive pneumococcal disease. J. Med. Genet. 44: 16-23 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Casrouge, A., Zhang, S.-Y., Eidenschenk, C., Jouanguy, E., Puel, A., Yang, K., Alcais, A., Picard, C., Mahfoufi, N., Nicolas, N., Lorenzo, L., Plancoulaine, S., Senechal, B., Geissmann, F., Tabeta, K., Hoebe, K., Du, X., Miller, R. L., Heron, B., Mignot, C., de Villemeur, T. B., Lebon, P., Dulac, O., Rozenberg, F., Beutler, B., Tardieu, M., Abel, L., Casanova, J.-L. (2006). Herpes Simplex Virus Encephalitis in Human UNC-93B Deficiency. Science 314: 308-312 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Paltiel, O., Laniado, D. E., Yanetz, R., Deutsch, L., Calderon-Margalit, R., Harlap, S., Friedlander, Y. (2006). The Risk of Cancer following Hospitalization for Infection in Infancy: A Population-Based Cohort Study.. Cancer Epidemiol. Biomarkers Prev. 15: 1964-1968 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Baghdadi, J. E., Orlova, M., Alter, A., Ranque, B., Chentoufi, M., Lazrak, F., Archane, M. I., Casanova, J.-L., Benslimane, A., Schurr, E., Abel, L. (2006). An autosomal dominant major gene confers predisposition to pulmonary tuberculosis in adults. JEM 203: 1679-1684 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Wobus, C. E., Thackray, L. B., Virgin, H. W. IV (2006). Murine norovirus: a model system to study norovirus biology and pathogenesis.. J. Virol. 80: 5104-5112 [Full Text]  
• Chapgier, A., Wynn, R. F., Jouanguy, E., Filipe-Santos, O., Zhang, S., Feinberg, J., Hawkins, K., Casanova, J.-L., Arkwright, P. D. (2006). Human Complete Stat-1 Deficiency Is Associated with Defective Type I and II IFN Responses In Vitro but Immunity to Some Low Virulence Viruses In Vivo.. J. Immunol. 176: 5078-5083 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Alcais, A., Fieschi, C., Abel, L., Casanova, J.-L. (2005). Tuberculosis in children and adults: two distinct genetic diseases. JEM 202: 1617-1621 [Abstract] [Full Text]  

Home | Help | Feedback | Subscriptions | Archive | Search

TABLE OF CONTENTS