Proinsulin 90-104 – Other Categories

The development of type I diabetes occurs when auto-aggressive T cells are not controlled by T regulatory cells and are allowed to destroy pancreatic islet cells. This ultimately eliminates the production of insulin within the body. A more precise understanding of the regulatory T cell’s antigen specificity by using antigens can provide significant clinical insights into the development of long-term diabetes. The proinsulin 90-104 fragment was used to test antigen-specific T-cell responses in type I diabetes CD4+ T cells. This peptide has helped show that the development of diabetes is linked to an increase in proinsulin-specific T regulatory cells, which may be regulating the rise in auto-aggressive T cells. Further work with the proinsulin 90-104 peptide could help design novel antigen-specific therapy.