Publications by authors named "Tal Freund"

This paper aims to compare the cellular immune response to the SARS-CoV-2 BNT162b2 vaccine of pediatric patients with autoimmune inflammatory rheumatic disease (pAIIRD) and healthy controls. A prospective longitudinal study was conducted between April 2021 and December 2022 at the Tel Aviv Medical Center. Children <18 years, with pediatric-onset AIIRD and healthy controls, who have received at least two doses of the BNT162b2 vaccine, were included.

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Background: Recent studies have shown good serological and cellular immune responses in people living with human immunodeficiency virus PLWH) after receipt of 2 doses of messenger RNAA (mRNA) severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 vaccine. Data are missing regarding the response after 3 vaccine doses.

Methods: We followed up a group of PLWH who received 3 doses of the mRNA BNT162b2 vaccine and for whom data of humoral immune response after 2 vaccine doses were available.

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Background: Autosomal dominant hyper-IgE syndrome (AD-HIES) caused by dominant negative (DN) variants in the signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 gene () is characterized by recurrent Staphylococcal abscesses, severe eczema, chronic mucocutaneous candidiasis (CMC), and non-immunological facial and skeletal features.

Objectives: To describe our experience with the diagnosis and treatment of adult patients with AD-HIES induced by DN- variants.

Methods: The medical records of adult patients (>18 years) treated at the Allergy and Clinical Immunology Clinic of Hadassah Medical Center, Jerusalem, Israel, were retrospectively analyzed.

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Pathogenic variants in LRBA, encoding the LPS Responsive Beige-Like Anchor (LRBA) protein, are responsible for recessive, early-onset hypogammaglobulinemia, severe multi-organ autoimmunity, and lymphoproliferation, with increased risk for malignancy. LRBA deficiency has a wide clinical spectrum with variable age of onset and disease severity. Three apparently unrelated patients with LRBA deficiency, of Georgian Jewish descent, were homozygous for LRBA c.

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Objectives: To evaluate long-term kinetics of the BNT162b2 mRNA vaccine-induced immune response in adult patients with autoimmune inflammatory rheumatic diseases (AIIRD) and immunocompetent controls.

Methods: A prospective multicentre study investigated serum anti-SARS-CoV-2 S1/S2 IgG titre at 2-6 weeks (AIIRD n=720, controls n=122) and 6 months (AIIRD n=628, controls n=116) after the second vaccine, and 2-6 weeks after the third vaccine dose (AIIRD n=169, controls n=45). T-cell immune response to the third vaccine was evaluated in a small sample.

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Background: Little is known about vaccine efficacy and sustainability among people with HIV (PWH). We estimated humoral and cellular immune responses postvaccination with BNT162b2 mRNA coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccine among PWH in Tel-Aviv Medical Center.

Methods: The vaccine humoral response was evaluated by measuring immunoglobulin G (IgG) titers of antispike receptor-binding domain antibodies (anti-RBD IgG).

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Background: Most solid organ transplant recipients did not develop an appreciable serologic response after 2 doses of the mRNA SARS-CoV-2 vaccine.

Methods: We analyzed the humoral response after a third dose of the BNT162b2 vaccine in 130 kidney transplant recipients, compared to 48 health care workers, and associated factors, including prevaccine cellular immune response, by evaluating intracellular cytokine production after stimulation of donor's peripheral blood mononuclear cells.

Results: After 2 doses, most of the controls (47 out of 48, 98%) and only 40% of kidney recipients (52 of 130) kidney recipients were seropositive (P < .

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Article Synopsis
  • The CD55 regulator is linked to the Cromer blood group and its complete dysfunction leads to a severe gastrointestinal syndrome along with a risk of venous thrombosis.
  • Two Bukharan Jewish patients with CD55-deficiency were found to have a specific genetic variant (c.596C>T; p.Ser199Leu) that causes incorrect splicing of the gene, resulting in low production of the CD55 protein.
  • This variant is common in the Bukharan Jewish population, suggesting many cases may go undiagnosed; timely diagnosis is crucial for effective treatment with eculizumab, which can significantly improve patient outcomes.
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Patients with delayed B-cell reconstitution/B-cell aplasia after cellular therapy show decreased immunogenicity to the BNT162b2 mRNA COVID-19 vaccine. We prospectively evaluated both humoral and cellular immune response to a third vaccine dose in patients after allogeneic HCT (n = 10) or CD19-based chimeric antigen receptor T cells (CAR-T) therapy (n = 6) with low absolute B cell numbers and who failed to mount a humeral response after 2 vaccine doses. Humoral response was documented in 40% and 17% after allogeneic HCT and CAR-T therapy, respectively.

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Data are scarce regarding both the safety and immunogenicity of the BNT162b2 mRNA COVID-19 vaccine in patients undergoing immune cell therapy; thus, we prospectively evaluated these two domains in patients receiving this vaccine after allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT; n = 66) or after CD19-based chimeric antigen receptor T cell (CART) therapy (n = 14). Overall, the vaccine was well tolerated, with mild non-hematologic vaccine-reported adverse events in a minority of the patients. Twelve percent of the patients after the first dose and 10% of the patients after the second dose developed cytopenia, and there were three cases of graft-versus-host disease exacerbation after each dose.

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Background: In mid-December 2020, Israel started a nationwide mass vaccination campaign against coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). In the first few weeks, medical personnel, elderly citizens, and patients with chronic diseases were prioritized. As such, patients with primary and secondary immunodeficiencies were encouraged to receive the vaccine.

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Article Synopsis
  • Posttransplantation lymphoproliferative disease (PTLD) can be severe following organ transplants, but survival rates for a specific type (DLBCL) have improved with rituximab treatment.
  • This study presents three cases of patients with refractory EBV-negative PTLD who were successfully treated with CAR-T therapy, demonstrating positive responses and a good safety profile.
  • The findings suggest that CAR-T therapy may be beneficial for patients with EBV-negative refractory PTLD, similar to its effects on other forms of DLBCL, but more research is needed for validation.
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More than 50 different monogenic disorders have been identified as directly causing inflammatory bowel diseases, typically manifesting in the first years of life. We present the clinical course and immunological work-up of an adult patient who presented in adolescent years with an atypical gastrointestinal phenotype and was diagnosed more than two decades later with a monogenic disorder with important therapeutic implications. Whole exome sequencing was performed in a 37-years-old patient with a history of diarrhea since adolescence.

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Chronic granulomatous disease (CGD) is a rare primary immunodeficiency disorder caused by defects in the NADPH oxidase complex. Mutations in NCF2 encoding the cytosolic factor p67 result in autosomal recessive CGD. We describe three patients with a novel c.

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