title: Oral insulin treatment suppresses virus-induced antigen-specific destruction of beta cells and prevents autoimmune diabetes in transgenic mice.
abstract: Oral administration of self-antigens has been proposed as a therapy to prevent and treat autoimmune diseases. Here we report that oral treatment with insulin prevents virus-induced insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (IDDM) in a transgenic (tg) mouse model. Such mice express the viral nucleoprotein (NP) of lymphocytic choriomeningitis virus (LCMV) under control of the rat insulin promoter in their pancreatic beta cells and < 2% spontaneously develop diabetes. However, 2 mo after challenge with LCMV, IDDM occurs in > 95% of tg mice but not in controls. Oral treatment with 1 mg of insulin twice per week for 2 mo starting either 1 wk before or 10 d after initiating LCMV infection prevents IDDM in > 50% of the tg mice (observation time 8 mo). Thus, insulin therapy is effective in preventing progression to overt IDDM in prediabetic tg mice with ongoing islet infiltration. Oral administration of insulin does not affect the generation of LCMV-NP-specific anti-self cytotoxic T lymphocytes nor the infiltration of lymphocytes into the pancreas. However, less beta cells are destroyed in insulin-treated mice, upregulation of MHC class I and II molecules does not occur, and antiviral (self) cytotoxic T lymphocytes are not found in the islets, events present in tg mice developing IDDM. The majority of lymphocytes in the islets of insulin-treated tg mice without IDDM produces IL-4, IL-10, and TGF-beta. In contrast, lymphocytes from islets of tg mice developing IDDM mainly make gamma-IFN.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neuropharmacology, Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, California 92037, USA. matthias@scripps.edu
authors.forename: M G
authors.initials: MG
authors.lastname: von Herrath
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Dyrberg
authors.forename: M B
authors.initials: MB
authors.lastname: Oldstone
mesh_terms: D000284:Administration, Oral; D000818:Animals; D015551:Autoimmunity; D001402:B-Lymphocytes / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000473:pathology; D002465:Cell Movement; D003921:Diabetes Mellitus, Experimental / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000276:immunology / Q000821:virology; D015395:Histocompatibility Antigens Class I / Q000096:biosynthesis; D000949:Histocompatibility Antigens Class II / Q000096:biosynthesis; D007004:Hypoglycemic Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D007328:Insulin / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D007371:Interferon-gamma / Q000096:biosynthesis; D016753:Interleukin-10 / Q000096:biosynthesis; D015847:Interleukin-4 / Q000096:biosynthesis; D007515:Islets of Langerhans / Q000276:immunology; D008217:Lymphocytic choriomeningitis virus / Q000276:immunology; D051379:Mice; D008822:Mice, Transgenic; D009698:Nucleoproteins / Q000276:immunology; D010179:Pancreas / Q000276:immunology; D013602:T-Lymphocytes, Cytotoxic / Q000276:immunology; D016212:Transforming Growth Factor beta / Q000096:biosynthesis
chemical_list: D015395:Histocompatibility Antigens Class I; D000949:Histocompatibility Antigens Class II; D007004:Hypoglycemic Agents; D007328:Insulin; D009698:Nucleoproteins; D016212:Transforming Growth Factor beta; D016753:Interleukin-10; D015847:Interleukin-4; D007371:Interferon-gamma