Autoimmune diabetes: an immunological study of type 1 diabetes in humans and in a model of experimental diabetes (in RIP-B7.1 mice)
In the clinical part of the study the prevalence of genetic markers and disease-associated autoantibodies in Estonian patients with new-onset type 1 diabetes were determined, and the associations between genetic factors and autoantibodies were analysed. The experimental part of the study was carried out in RIP(rat insulin promoter)-B7.1 transgenic mice in whom the expression of the immunostimulatory B7.1 molecule in -cells increases the susceptibility of the mice to autoimmune diabetes. In the current study the main diabetogenic T cell population of this experimental model was characterised and the target epitope of the pathogenic T cell response against the insulin molecule was identified.
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