OBJECTIVE In a prospective birth cohort study, we followed infants who had a first-degree relative with type 1 diabetes to investigate the relationship between early growth and infant feeding and the risk of islet autoimmunity. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS Infants with a first-degree relative with type 1 diabetes were identified during their mother's pregnancy. Dietary intake was recorded pros...

The association between lymphopenia and autoimmunity is recognized, but the underlying mechanisms are poorly understood and have not been studied systematically in humans. People with multiple sclerosis treated with the lymphocyte-depleting monoclonal antibody alemtuzumab offer a unique opportunity to study this phenomenon; one in three people develops clinical autoimmunity, and one in three pe...

Immunomodulation of the autoreactive T cell response is considered a major strategy to control beta-cell autoimmunity, both in the natural history of type 1 diabetes and in islet transplantation, which can be affected by autoimmunity recurrence. So far, these strategies have had modest results, prompting efforts to define novel cellular and molecular targets to control autoreactive T cell expan...

Extensive research in recent years suggests that exposure to xenobiotic stimuli plays a critical role in autoimmunity induction and severity and that the resulting response would be exacerbated in individuals with an infection-aroused immune system. In this context, heavy metals constitute a prominent category of xenobiotic substances, known to alter divergent immune cell responses in accidenta...

Tumor necrosis factor superfamily (TNFSF) molecules play an important role in the activation, proliferation, differentiation, and migration of immune cells into the central nervous system (CNS). Several TNF superfamily molecules are known to control alloimmunity, autoimmunity, and immunity. Development of transgenic and gene knockout animals, and monoclonal antibodies against TNFSF molecules ha...

Mosaicism of normal and chromosomally aberrant cells was detected in 14 of 20 spleens from adult New Zealand Black (NZB) mice reared under conventional conditions, a strain that spontaneously develops autoimmunity and lymphoreticular malignancy. No abnormalities were found in marrows from these same animals or in spleens from NZB mice younger than 3 months. The prevalence of chromosomal aberrat...

BACKGROUND The cause of autoimmunity, which is unknown, is investigated from a different angle, i.e., the defect in immune 'system', to explain the cause of autoimmunity. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS Repeated immunization with antigen causes systemic autoimmunity in mice otherwise not prone to spontaneous autoimmune diseases. Overstimulation of CD4(+) T cells led to the development of autoa...

Objective To describe the retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) with demographic and clinical profile in patients glutamic acid decarboxylase 65 (GAD65) glycine receptor (GlyR) neurological autoimmunity. Background GAD65 GlyR autoimmunity can cause a wide range of phenomena, including stiff-person spectrum disorder (SPSD) epilepsy. Both GAD65, through γ-aminobutyric acid-ergic neurons, interact reti...