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According to University of Queensland researchers, knowing the link between diabetes and the gut could lead to the development of new therapies to delay the onset of type 1 diabetes, a change in microorganisms in the gut could predict and monitor the progression of the disease.
Type 1 diabetes is caused by an immune attack on the pancreas. There is a link between gut bacteria and disease progression- a direct relationship between pancreas function and gut bacteria hasn’t been shown until now. Studying the stool samples of the study participants, researchers discovered that changes in gut bacteria weren’t just a side effect of the disease, but are likely related to disease progression.
Observing the same characteristics in diagnosed patients and undiagnosed high-risk relatives means these proteins may be used to predict a future diabetes diagnosis. Understanding the pathways that leads to the development of type 1 diabetes is very important to developing new treatment strategies for the condition.