Two new studies provide evidence that a common viral infection might trigger type 1 diabetes.
Previous studies had suggested that infection with an enterovirus such as cocksackie B enterovirus might play a role in type 1 diabetes. In one of the new studies, scientists from England and Scotland found evidence suggesting that type 1 diabetes might be triggered by an enterovirus infection in genetically susceptible children (Richardson SJ et al. Diabetologia. doi: 10.1007/s00125-009-1276-0 [published online March 6, 2009]).
To investigate this, the researchers used immunostaining to detect enteroviral capsid protein vp1 and other substances in pancreatic autopsy samples and found that 61% (44/72) of individuals with recent-onset type 1 diabetes showed evidence of vp1 in multiple islet cells and 40% (10/25) of adults with type 2 diabetes showed evidence of vp1 in some islets. In contrast, evidence of vp1 was found in only 3 islets in . . . [Full Text of this Article]
