Clinical, Immunologic and Molecular Spectrum of Patients with Immunodeficiency, Centromeric Instability, and Facial Anomalies (ICF) Syndrome: A Systematic Review

Immunodeficiency, centromeric instability and facial dysmorphism (ICF) syndrome is a rare autosomal recessive immune disorder presenting with hypogammaglobulinemia, developmental delay, and facial anomalies. The ICF type 1, type 2, type 3 and type 4 are characterized by mutations in DNMT3B, ZBTB24, CDCA7 or HELLS gene, respectively. This study aimed to present a comprehensive description of the clinical, immunologic and genetic features of patients with ICF syndrome. PubMed, Web of Science, and Scopus were searched systemically to find eligible studies. Forty-eight studies with 118 ICF patients who met the inclusion criteria were included in our study. Among these patients, 60% reported with ICF-1, 30% with ICF-2, 4% with ICF-3, and 6% with ICF-4. The four most common symptoms reported in patients with ICF syndrome were: delay in motor development, low birth weight, chronic infections, and diarrhea. Intellectual disability and preterm birth among patients with ICF-2 and failure to thrive, sepsis and fungal infections among patients with ICF1 were also more frequent. Moreover, the median levels of all three immunoglobulins (IgA, IgG, IgM) were markedly reduced within four types of ICF syndrome. The frequency of diagnosed patients with ICF syndrome has increased. Early diagnosis of ICF is important since immunoglobulin supplementation or allogeneic stem cell transplantation can improve the disease-free survival rate.

Automated summary

ICF syndrome is a rare autosomal recessive immune disorder characterized by hypogammaglobulinemia, developmental delay, and facial anomalies. Patients with ICF syndrome commonly present with symptoms such as delayed motor development, low birth weight, chronic infections, and diarrhea. Early diagnosis is crucial for improving disease-free survival rates.