Association between HLA Class II Alleles/Haplotypes and Genomic Ancestry in Brazilian Patients with Type 1 Diabetes: A Nationwide Exploratory Study

Genetic and Epigenetic Aspects of Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus: Modern View on the Problem

Omics technologies accumulated an enormous amount of data that advanced knowledge about the molecular pathogenesis of type 1 diabetes mellitus and identified a number of fundamental problems focused on the transition to personalized diabetology in the future. Among them, the most significant are the following: (1) clinical and genetic heterogeneity of type 1 diabetes mellitus; (2) the prognostic significance of DNA markers beyond the HLA genes; (3) assessment of the contribution of a large number of DNA markers to the polygenic risk of disease progress; (4) the existence of ethnic population differences in the distribution of frequencies of risk alleles and genotypes; (5) the infancy of epigenetic research into type 1 diabetes mellitus. Disclosure of these issues is one of the priorities of fundamental diabetology and practical healthcare. The purpose of this review is the systemization of the results of modern molecular genetic, transcriptomic, and epigenetic investigations of type 1 diabetes mellitus in general, as well as its individual forms. The paper summarizes data on the role of risk HLA haplotypes and a number of other candidate genes and loci, identified through genome-wide association studies, in the development of this disease and in alterations in T cell signaling. In addition, this review assesses the contribution of differential DNA methylation and the role of microRNAs in the formation of the molecular pathogenesis of type 1 diabetes mellitus, as well as discusses the most currently central trends in the context of early diagnosis of type 1 diabetes mellitus.

Prevalence of autoimmune diseases in an admixed population of patients with type 1 diabetes: a multicenter study in Brazil

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES

The primary aim of this study was to evaluate the prevalence of autoimmune diseases (AIDs) and its associated factors in an admixed Brazilian population of patients with type 1 diabetes (T1D). The secondary one was to determine the relationship between AIDs and the occurrence of diabetes-related chronic complications (DRCC).

METHODS

This cross-sectional, nationwide survey was conducted in 13 public clinics in 11 Brazilian cities. Overall, 1,760 patients were included; 967 females (55.9%), 932 (54%) Caucasians, aged 29.9 ± 11.9 years, age at diagnosis 14.8 ± 8.9 years, diabetes duration 15.5 ± 9.3 years and 12.2 ± 3.8 years of school attendance. AIDs were retrieved from medical records or self-report and stratified as follows: absence of AIDs, only autoimmune thyroid disease (AITD), and other AIDs including the combination with AITD (hyper or hypothyroidism).

RESULTS

The prevalence of AIDs was 19.5% being AITDs (16.1%), the most frequently found. A higher prevalence of hypertension, dyslipidemia and overweight or obesity was found in patients who had exclusively AITDs. A higher prevalence of diabetic retinopathy (DR) was observed in patients with AITDs and patients with other AIDs in combination with AITDs. Chronic kidney disease (CKD) was more prevalent in patients with only AITDs. Lower levels of HbA1C, were observed in patients with isolated AITDs or with other AIDs, regardless of the presence of AITD. Hierarchical multivariate analysis, showed that AIDs were associated with female gender, older age, and longer diabetes duration, self-reported color-race (White and Brown), geographic region (Brazilian North/Northeast region) and higher anti-TPO levels (≥ 35 UI/ml).

CONCLUSIONS

In conclusion, Brazilian patients with T1D, belonging to a highly ethnically admixed population, had an important prevalence of AIDs, mostly AITDs, that was associated with female gender, self-reported color-race, older age and longer diabetes duration. Moreover, these patients also had a higher prevalence of DRCC. Even though we highlight the importance of investigating the presence of AIDs at diagnosis and at regular intervals, it is unclear whether screening and early detection of additional AIDs may improve the clinical outcomes in individuals with T1D. Future prospective studies are necessary to establish the interplay between T1D, AIDs and DRCC.