title: Is Type 1 diabetes in the Japanese population the same as among Caucasians?
abstract: In the Japanese population, the incidence of type 1 diabetes is as low as approximately 2 cases/year/100,000 children, which is much lower compared to that in countries with populations predominantly of Caucasian origin. However, the prevalences of anti-islet autoantibodies in patients with Japanese type 1 diabetes are 60-70% for GAD autoantibodies, 45-50% for insulin autoantibodies (IAA), and 60-65% for IA-2 autoantibodies at disease onset, which are similar to those reported in Caucasian patients. With combinatorial analysis of these autoantibodies, 90% of patients express at least one of these autoantibodies and are classified as type 1A diabetics. There is a significant number of patients with latent autoimmune diabetes in adults (LADA) in Japan, and a high level of GAD autoantibodies has a high predictive value for future insulin deficiency in such patients. Recently, it has been reported that a group of extremely rapid-onset patients presented with diabetic ketoacidosis and a low HbA1c level, called fulminant diabetes mellitus. Although they had severe hyperglycemia, these individuals lacked the expression of anti-islet autoantibodies. With a nationwide survey, it was documented that fulminant type 1 diabetes accounts for approximately 20% of the ketosis-onset patients with type 1 diabetes in Japan. It is currently unknown whether the pathogenesis of fulminant type 1 diabetes is associated with autoimmune response to pancreatic islet beta cells. Japanese patients with type 1 diabetes are clinically heterogeneous, and further investigations are required to clarify the underlying pathogenesis for each subgroup of type 1 diabetes.
authors.affiliation: Department of Metabolism/Diabetes and Clinical Nutrition, Nagasaki University Hospital of Medicine and Dentistry, 1-7-1 Sakamoto, Nagasaki 852-8501, Japan. eijikawa@net.nagasaki-u.ac.jp
authors.forename: Eiji
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Kawasaki
authors.forename: Katsumi
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Eguchi
mesh_terms: D017668:Age of Onset; D044466:Asian People / Q000235:genetics*; D001323:Autoantibodies / Q000032:analysis / Q000276:immunology; D003922:Diabetes Mellitus, Type 1 / Q000097:blood / Q000145:classification / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000235:genetics* / Q000276:immunology; D016883:Diabetic Ketoacidosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000276:immunology; D005260:Female; D005787:Gene Frequency; D005968:Glutamate Decarboxylase / Q000276:immunology; D006683:HLA-DQ Antigens / Q000235:genetics; D006684:HLA-DR Antigens / Q000235:genetics; D006239:Haplotypes; D006801:Humans; D006943:Hyperglycemia / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000276:immunology; D015994:Incidence; D007564:Japan / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D015995:Prevalence; D044465:White People / Q000235:genetics*
chemical_list: D001323:Autoantibodies; D006683:HLA-DQ Antigens; D006684:HLA-DR Antigens; C096322:ICA512 autoantibody; D005968:Glutamate Decarboxylase