The role of dendritic cells in Salmonella typhimurium mediated diabetes prevention in NOD mice

在1型糖尿病中，个体的免疫系统选择性地破坏体内分泌胰岛素的细胞，胰岛素是维持体内葡萄糖水平所必需的激素。虽然这种疾病的发展是由遗传因素控制的，但很明显，环境因素在决定1型糖尿病是否真的在遗传易感个体中发展方面也起着重要作用。可能影响糖尿病发展的环境因素之一是感染。我们和其他人已经证明，一些蠕虫或细菌感染实际上可以预防1型糖尿病小鼠模型的糖尿病发作。通过在该模型中确定感染预防糖尿病发作的机制，这可能导致开发新的治疗方法来预防这种自身免疫性疾病在人类中的发展。

In Type 1 diabetes the immune system of an individual selectively destroys the cells in the body that secrete insulin, a hormone which is essential for maintaining glucose levels in the body. Although the development of this disease is governed by genetic factors it is clear that environmental factors additionally play a big role in determining whether Type 1 diabetes actually develops in a genetically prone individual. Among the environmental factors that might impact on diabetes development is infection. We, and others, have shown that some worm or bacterial infections actually prevent diabetes onset in a mouse model of Type 1 diabetes. By identifying the mechanisms by which infections prevent diabetes onset in this model this may lead to the development of novel therapies to prevent this autoimmune disease developing in humans.