Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41203922›Full record

ArticleJournal of clinical immunology2025

Next-generation Sequencing and Other Second Tier Tests in Newborn Screening for (X-linked) Agammaglobulinemia.

Maartje Blom, Annelotte J Duintjer, Ingrid Pico-Knijnenburg, Sandra Imholz, Sahila Balkassmi, Hermine A van Duyvenvoorde, Mirjam van der Burg

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Journal of clinical immunology, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
3citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

3 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
  2. Article
  3. Transient B cell lymphopenia revealed by KRECs newborn screening: Post-screening referral strategies, clinical course, and follow-up.Pediatric allergy and immunology : official publication of the European Society of Pediatric Allergy and Immunology · 2026
    Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

7 authors.

Maartje BlomDepartment of Pediatrics, Laboratory for Pediatric Immunology, Willem- Alexander Children's Hospital, Leiden University Medical Center (LUMC), Albinusdreef 2, Leiden, 2333, ZA, the Netherlands. m.blom@lumc.nl.ORCID 0000-0002-2993-7847
Annelotte J DuintjerDepartment of Pediatrics, Laboratory for Pediatric Immunology, Willem- Alexander Children's Hospital, Leiden University Medical Center (LUMC), Albinusdreef 2, Leiden, 2333, ZA, the Netherlands.
Ingrid Pico-KnijnenburgDepartment of Pediatrics, Laboratory for Pediatric Immunology, Willem- Alexander Children's Hospital, Leiden University Medical Center (LUMC), Albinusdreef 2, Leiden, 2333, ZA, the Netherlands.
Sandra ImholzCentre for Health Protection, National Institute for Public Health and the Environment, Bilthoven, the Netherlands.
Sahila BalkassmiClinical Genetics, Leiden University Medical Center (LUMC), Leiden, the Netherlands.
Hermine A van DuyvenvoordeClinical Genetics, Leiden University Medical Center (LUMC), Leiden, the Netherlands.
Mirjam van der BurgDepartment of Pediatrics, Laboratory for Pediatric Immunology, Willem- Alexander Children's Hospital, Leiden University Medical Center (LUMC), Albinusdreef 2, Leiden, 2333, ZA, the Netherlands. m.van_der_burg@lumc.nl.ORCID 0000-0002-1510-3104

Funding

Takeda Pharmaceuticals International IISR-2021-200128
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

purposePatients with X-linked agammaglobulinemia (XLA) suffer from severe, recurrent infections potentially leading to life-threatening complications. Early diagnosis and timely treatment can prevent infections and secondary complications, emphasizing a role for newborn screening (NBS). NBS for XLA is based on quantification of kappa-deleting recombination excision circles (KRECs). KREC-based screening could result in a large number of false-positive referrals associated with high impact for parents and health care systems, indicating the need for a second tier test.

methodsKRECs were measured in NBS cards (N = 110,491) with a multiplex TREC/KREC qPCR assay. As second tier test options, an alternative qPCR multiplex assay, epigenetic immune cell counting for relative B-cell quantification and targeted next-generation sequencing with B-cell deficiency gene panel including 73 genes were performed on NBS cards of newborns with low KRECs.

resultsIn total, 136/110,491 newborns had KRECs below cut-off. With the alternative qPCR multiplex assay, 16/110 of these newborns (14.5%) had KRECs above cut-off and would not have been referred. With epigenetic immune cell counting, 16.5% (17/103) had relative B-cell counts in the range of healthy controls. Targeted NGS showed promising results as 87 out of 103 (84%) newborns with low KRECs did not show any pathogenic/likely pathogenic variants and would not have been referred for follow-up diagnostics.

conclusionSeveral second tier tests can potentially reduce the number of false-positive referrals in NBS for XLA. NGS seems to be the most effective technique in NBS for XLA and other forms of agammaglobulinemia. Our results show promising first steps towards the implementation of NBS for XLA.

Indexed as

AgammaglobulinemiaGenetic Diseases, X-LinkedHigh-Throughput Nucleotide SequencingNeonatal ScreeningB-LymphocytesFemaleGenetic TestingHumansInfant, NewbornMaleB-cell deficiencyBruton tyrosine kinaseBTKGeneticsKappa-deleting recombination excision circlesKRECNBSNewborn screeningNext generation sequencingNGSXLAX-linked agammaglobulinemia

Identifiers

PMID41203922
PMCPMC12594685

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.