Volunteer for NIAID-funded clinical studies related to ALPS by
going to ClinicalTrials.gov. View a list of NIH investigators
and their contact information. To understand ALPS, it helps to
understand how the immune system responds to an infection. For
example, when a person has the flu, cells in the nose and throat
instruct the immune system to start making more lymphocytes, a
major class of white blood cells comprising T cells and B cells.
New troops of lymphocytes come to the nose and throat to seek
out and destroy the cells infected with the flu virus. Once the
virus is conquered, the lymphocytes get a message that their job
is done and that they are no longer needed. At this point, it is
normal for most of the fighter cells to disintegrate through a
process called apoptosis. While immune systems of people with
ALPS are efficient in fighting germs and other agents, the
problems begin after an infection is gone. In ALPS, apoptosis
does not work as well as it should. In other words, the
lymphocytes don't hear