The chronic granulomatous It is a rare disease that affects white blood cells, a genetic mutation does not allow them to eliminate the microorganisms that invade the body. It is usually diagnosed in childhood as a general rule, except for some cases in which it also appears in adolescence.
The main characteristic of this disease is the continuous infections that the child suffers from affecting him in several organs, although with more incidence in the lungs, since they are perhaps the weakest and least developed organ. Its incidence could be described as insignificant, as there is a case among a million. Now, a group of Italian researchers has managed to reveal the mechanism by which white blood cells are unable to counteract the microorganisms that cause infections.
Apparently, the disease in question is generated when white blood cells surround the pathogen by attacking it with oxygen radicals, one of them, specifically the so-called superoxide or SOD, is a powerful defensive mechanism but at the same time it is the cause of aggravating the situation.
This is due to the fact that the superoxide itself reduces the capacity of phagocytes and also helps the microorganisms to create areas of hyperinflammation. This new data provides new ways of research to try to eradicate a disease that severely impoverishes the quality of life of children who suffer from it.
