A new unexpected method of diabetes prevention found

Breakthrough in diabetes treatment: scientists from the University of Wisconsin-Madison have discovered that deactivating a single gene can prevent the development of type 1 diabetes. The revolutionary research has been published in the prestigious scientific journal Nature Communications.

As reported by TUT.AZ with reference to Nature Communications, the gene Xbp1, responsible for cellular response to stress situations, played a key role in the discovery. As part of the experiment, scientists deliberately removed this gene specifically in pancreatic beta cells of laboratory mice – cells that produce insulin and become the first targets of the immune system during the development of type 1 diabetes.

The results were striking: in rodents with a genetic predisposition to diabetes, the disease either did not develop at all, or only a temporary increase in blood sugar levels was observed, which subsequently normalized on its own. Further studies revealed that in the absence of the Xbp1 gene, beta cells temporarily lose their characteristic features: they stop functioning as full-fledged insulin-producing cells, becoming "invisible" to the immune system.

This phenomenon leads to a significant reduction in inflammatory processes and protects cells from destruction. Subsequently, beta cells restore their normal functionality, and blood glucose concentration returns to normal levels.

Researchers note that these results radically change the traditional understanding of type 1 diabetes. It was discovered that beta cells are not just passively attacked by the immune system, but are active participants in this complex process. In the long term, this opens new horizons for developing preventive methods – for example, temporarily blocking the Xbp1 gene in people with a high risk of developing diabetes even before the first clinical manifestations of the disease appear.