Viral Infection May Trigger Childhood Diabetes in Utero

http://www.aftau.org/weblog-medicine--health?=&storyid4704=2112&ncs4704=3

Friday, October 03, 2014 10:26:00 AM

TAU research says prenatal exposure to viruses may cause type 1 diabetes and other autoimmune diseases in children

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In a recent paper published in Diabetic Medicine, Prof. Zvi Laron, Professor Emeritus of Pediatric Endocrinology at TAU's Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Director of the Endocrinology and Diabetes Research Unit at Schneider Children's Medical Center of Israel, and Head of the WHO Collaborating Center for the Study of Diabetes in Youth, puts forth evidence that the autoimmune disease is initiated in utero. According to the research, conducted in collaboration with an international team of researchers, women who contract a viral infection during pregnancy transmit viruses to their genetically susceptible fetuses, sparking the development of type 1 diabetes.

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"We knew that type 1 diabetes was associated with other autoimmune diseases like Hashimoto Thyroiditis, celiac disease, and multiple sclerosis, so we investigated the seasonality of birth months for these respective diseases in Israel and other countries," said Prof. Laron. "We found that the seasonality of the birth of children who went on to develop these diseases did indeed differ from that of the general public.

"In further studies, we found evidence that viral infections of the mother during pregnancy induced damage to the pancreas of the mother and/or the fetus, evidenced by specific antibodies including those affecting the pancreatic cells producing insulin," Dr. Laron said.

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"If our hypothesis can be verified, then preventive vaccine before conception would be useful in stopping the increasing incidence of type 1 diabetes and other autoimmune diseases," said Prof. Laron. "There is no cure for this diabetes, so true intervention would be important not only medically but also psychologically and financially, as the costs of the lifelong treatment of this chronic disease and other autoimmune diseases are great."

Prof. Laron and his international collaborators are currently raising funds to expand their research to include nearly 1,000 women and newborns.