The University of Birmingham has launched five new major studies, many funded by charitable grants, aimed at improving the prevention, treatment and management of type 1 diabetes – with a particular focus on children and young adults.
Type 1 diabetes needs a revolution
Treatment for type 1 diabetes, in which the immune system attacks the cells that make insulin, hasn't changed much since insulin was first discovered 100 years ago. And in the UK, diagnosis still relies on waiting for patients to come in, often with quite acute symptoms. While diet and physical activity can help reduce the risk and manage type 2 diabetes, in which the body does not make enough insulin or the body does not respond to it, the causes of type 1 are still mysterious.
Birmingham has the highest rate of diabetes in the UK; nearly one in 10 people in some parts of the city. Inspired by our city, the University is determined to support people with diabetes worldwide in need of better answers.
Professor Parth Narendran, who leads the EarLy Surveillance for Autoimmune diabetes (ELSA) study at Birmingham, says: 'Studies have recently shown that some medicines can safely delay people getting type 1 diabetes. Some countries, such as the US and Australia, already have surveillance systems to identify people at risk of developing type 1 diabetes and to offer them participation in prevention trials and to reduce their chances of developing it as an unexpected emergency.'
Why we support research at Birmingham
Dr Faye Riley, Research Communications Manager at Diabetes UK says: 'We're proud to support pioneering research at the University of Birmingham that has the potential to transform how type 1 diabetes is identified and managed in the UK, and help prevent its serious complications.'
Diabetes UK funds the ELSA study, plus Dr José M Romero’s research into preventing vision loss. He says: 'Around 80% of individuals with type 1 diabetes develop some type of eye complication within 20 years. Our research could help identify ways to treat or prevent vision loss.'
Dr Riley says: 'The symptoms of type 1 diabetes – the 4Ts – feeling more tired or thirsty than usual, going to the toilet more often and unexplained weight loss (becoming thinner), can come on very quickly and often require hospital treatment, where many people are diagnosed. Professor Narendran's research could pave the way for a future where we no longer have to wait until type 1 diabetes develops to treat it, giving everyone a better chance of a safe diagnosis, and access to exciting new treatments that could delay or prevent the condition.
'As we work towards curing and preventing diabetes, we also need to stop the harm it causes. Diabetes is the leading cause of preventable sight loss in the UK, but research like José’s could help to change that.'
Five ways Birmingham researchers are helping people with type 1 diabetes
1: Should we screen children for early signs of type 1 diabetes?
Led by Professor Parth Narendran, researchers in the ELSA study will test 20,000 children for early type 1 diabetes and interview families, doctors, nurses and schools, to determine if and how the UK should test and monitor children to identify those at risk of type 1 diabetes. ELSA is funded by Diabetes UK, the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF) and the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR), working with many partners.
2: Preventing sight loss and multiple health conditions
Two projects led by Dr José M Romero will explore how new therapies aimed at protecting mitochondrial function can be exploited to prevent multiple health conditions (funded by the European Foundation for the Study of Diabetes), and prevent people developing an eye condition that can cause sight loss and blindness (funded by Diabetes UK).
3: Immunotherapies for type 1 diabetes
Recent clinical trials demonstrate that type 1 diabetes can be significantly delayed with a short course of immunotherapy, revolutionising thinking around prevention and 'cure'. A clinical study led by Professor David Wraith, funded by the Leona M and Harry B Helmsley Charitable Trust, will test a new peptide developed at Birmingham, which has the potential to control the T-cell immune response.
4: Can exercise slow down type 1 diabetes?
Led by Dr Alex Wadley and funded by the Rosetrees Trust, this research will examine how a home-based exercise programme impacts autoimmunity in newly diagnosed patients. The project will evaluate whether exercise slows the progression of type 1 diabetes by altering the number and activity of white blood cells that could damage the pancreas.
5: How does poverty and/or ethnicity affect how people manage diabetes?
Professor Tim Barrett's team will ask how income, food availability, language issues, feelings and living conditions affect how children and families manage type 1 diabetes, to identify new ways to make diabetes management easier and more successful, then test them in trials involving NHS hospitals. This work is funded by NIHR.
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