Type 1 diabetes has been an enigma for researchers as it has been difficult to understand how the condition develops. Why does the body attack its own insulin-producing beta cells (autoimmune condition)? Research has been unable to provide the answers to this fundamental question.
Well, if you cannot find the cause, you can at least try to detect the symptoms of the condition. And that is how most cases of type 1 diabetes have been detected.
Now, a recently published article in the journal Diabetologia shows that it is possible to actually tell if a child would develop type 1 diabetes based on a particular protein signature.
The research was carried out by scientists affiliated to 4 research institutions in Germany. The lead author of the study and the corresponding authors are associated with the Research Unit Protein Science as well as the Institute of Diabetes Research at the Helmholz Zentrum Munchen in Germany.
Forty-five children of whom 30 were found to belong to the type 1 diabetic group were selected to have their blood samples analyzed. The 30 children who developed type 1 diabetes either developed it after a considerable length of time or very quickly.
The blood samples were analyzed for a protein signature in the diabetic and non-diabetic children. What this means basically is that in our body we have proteins that are present in different amounts. And any changes in our body, such as infections can cause a shift in the levels of these proteins.
The relative peptide (short proteins not linked to any other molecule) levels in the diabetic children were found to differ from those in the nondiabetic group. A total of 82 distinct peptides were obtained where their levels differed from the normal group.
The study then selected one group of peptides in the diabetic group that significantly differed from the control group. And voila! They zeroed in on the peptides involved in fat breakdown.
In a recent blog on identifying the risk factor in vitamin B12-deficient pregnant women, which causes type 2 diabetes in the offspring, I mentioned that the levels of the hormone leptin was an indicator. And fat cells in fatty tissue produce leptin.
Isn’t this an uncanny connection? It appears that fats is probably an issue for both type 1 diabetes and type 2 diabetes.
The results of the study have shown that 3 peptides can predict the time taken to develop type 1 diabetes. The names of the 3 peptides are ceruloplasmin, hepatocyte growth factor activator, and complement factor H.
The 2 peptides that can accurately distinguish type 1 diabetic children from non-diabetic children are apolipoprotein C-IV and apolipoprotein M.
The research indicates that it is possible to detect the initial stages of autoimmunity even before the symptoms of type 1 diabetes set in. The peptide signature is easy to obtain from blood samples and this will make type 1 diabetes detection easier.
