The blockade of the proteins released from the pancreas to activate the destruction of beta cells by the immune system would avoid the development of the disease
Type 1 diabetes is a chronic disease caused by destruction by the patient's own immune system of the cells responsible for the production of insulin - the banned beta cells of the pancreatic islets.
Consequently, and since this insulin is the hormone responsible for the cells to capture the glucose of the blood to produce energy, the bloodstream ends up carrying an excess of glucose, which ends up causing damage to multiple organs of the body.
The result is that despite the advances achieved in the treatment of the disease, patients still have a remarkably lower life expectancy - until 12.2 years less - than that of the general population.
And in this context, researchers at the Federal Polytechnic School of Lausana (Switzerland) seem to have found a key protein that triggers that the immune system attack and destroys insulin producing cells, which opens the door to the development of new therapies toFaced with this devastating disease
As Steinunn Baekkeskov, director of this research published in the magazine "Diabetes", explains the attack by the immune system in type 1 diabetes could be triggered by proteins released by the pancreas itself, as well as by the packaging that these proteins present.A finding that could have very significant implications for the design of new therapeutic strategies ».
Signals of self -destruction
The study, carried out with both human cell crops and an animal model - straight - of type 1 diabetes, demonstrates that the beta cells of pancreatic islets are responsible for the release of three proteins that are directly associated with the appearance ofType 1 diabetes. In fact, these three proteins are already used today by doctors to, once their presence is verified, diagnose the disease.What was not known is that they were released by the pancreas cells themselves.
But, exactly, what is the relationship between these proteins and type 1 diabetes?Well, simply and plain, they activate the immune system to attack the cells that have released them.However, it is not just his presence.Its ‘presentation’ is also very important: proteins must be released within small vesicles called ‘exosomes’ that expel the cells to communicate with their neighbors - if well it is also possible that they do it to get rid of unnecessary proteins.
That is, these exosomes with ‘packaged’ proteins would act as a signal that beta cells would use to become an objective of the immune system.Or in other words, to self -destruct.
Specifically, and as the new study shows, the sequence would be the following: first, and in stress situations, insulin producing cells release a large number of exosomes, whose membranes are the proteins that activate the immune system;And secondly, and after detecting the presence of these ‘pro -inflammatory’ proteins in exosomes, immune cells attack and destroy their source, thus depriving the body of any insulin production.The result, the development of type 1 diabetes.
Prevent the attack
The next step will be to develop exosomes similar to those produced by beta cells, but with a exception: instead of presenting these proinflammatory proteins, synthetic molecules will contain that inhibit the action of the immune system.
As the authors conclude, “we hope that our results will lead to new directions in theDevelopment of more effective treatments.These synthetic molecules would be captured by the patient's immune cells and avoid attack on beta cells.
