AsianScientist (Apr. 24, 2011) – Type 1 diabetes and Sjogren’s syndrome are autoimmune diseases which arise when the body’s defenses become overactive, attacking one’s own cells instead of foreign microbes.
In the case of Type 1 diabetes, the body attacks insulin-producing cells in the pancreas while in the case of Sjogren’s syndrome, it attacks its own salivary glands.
Drs. Cecile King and Helen McGuire from Sydney’s Garvan Institute of Medical Research, in collaboration with Associate Professor David Fulcher from Sydney’s Westmead Hospital, have identified particularly high numbers of a unique immune cell in the affected organs of mice with Type 1 Diabetes and Sjogren’s syndrome.
This newly discovered population of cells is a subclass of T-helper cells, called TCCR9 cells due to their co-expression of two molecules: interleukin-21 and a cell surface receptor, CCR9, that is switched on when cells migrate through the gut.
“We know from our research in mice that if you target these cells, you can completely prevent immune mediated destruction of the salivary glands and pancreas.”
“In other words, you can prevent mice that are genetically programmed to develop Sjogren’s syndrome and Type 1 diabetes from ever developing those diseases,” King said.
According to King, these cells are also found in the gut of a healthy person. The difference is that they proliferate and become activated in the gut when the body shifts into disease mode. From the gut, they disseminate to the accessory organs of the digestive system – the pancreas in Type 1 Diabetes and the salivary glands in Sjogren’s syndrome. What triggers this process is currently unknown.
The researchers intend to extend their study of patients with Sjogren’s syndrome and Type 1 Diabetes. They are hopeful that these cells could become a biomarker of disease as well as a therapeutic target for patients suffering from these conditions.
The article can be found at: .
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Source: Garvan Institute of Medical Research.
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