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Aim: Our aim was to compare the presence of various common viruses (rhinovirus, enterovirus, adenovirus, Epstein-Barr virus, cytomegalovirus, norovirus, parechovirus) in stool and nasal swab samples as well as virus-specific antibodies in serum samples between children who developed coeliac disease and controls.Methods: A case-control study was established based on the DIABIMMUNE Study cohorts. During the study, eight Estonian children and 21 Finnish children aged 1.5 years to five years developed coeliac disease and each was matched with a disease-free control. Nasal swabs and stool samples were taken at the age of three to six months and the serum samples at the time of diagnosis.Results: Rhinovirus ribonucleic acid was detected in the nasal swabs from five coeliac disease children, but none of the control children (p = 0.05). There were no statistically significant differences in the level of viral antibodies between cases and controls. Enterovirus immunoglobulin G class antibodies were found more frequently in the Estonian than in the Finnish children (63% versus 23%, p = 0.02).Conclusion: This study did not find any marked overall differences in laboratory-confirmed common viral infections between the children who developed coeliac disease and the controls. However, rhinovirus infections were detected slightly more often in those patients who developed coeliac disease. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The etiology of type 1 diabetes (T1D) is largely unknown. Infections and microbial exposures are believed to play a role in the pathogenesis and in the development of islet autoimmunity in genetically susceptible individuals. Objective: To assess the relationships between early childhood infections, islet autoimmunity, and progression to T1D in genetically predisposed children. Methods: Children with human leukocyte antigen (HLA)‐conferred disease susceptibility (N=790; 51.5% males) from Finland (n = 386), Estonia (n = 322), and Russian Karelia (n = 82) were observed from birth up to the age of 3 years. Children attended clinical visits at the age of 3, 6, 12, 18, 24, and 36 months. Serum samples for analyzing T1D‐associated autoimmune markers were collected and health data recorded during the visits. Results: Children developing islet autoimmunity (n = 46, 5.8%) had more infections during the first year of life (3.0 vs 3.0, mean rank 439.1 vs 336.2; P = .001) and their first infection occurred earlier (3.6 vs 5.0 months; P = .005) than children with no islet autoimmunity. By May 2016, 7 children (0.9%) had developed T1D (progressors). Compared with non‐diabetic children, T1D progressors were younger at first infection (2.2 vs 4.9 months; P = .004) and had more infections during the first 2 years of life (during each year 6.0 vs 3.0; P = .001 and P = .027, respectively). By 3 years of age, the T1D progressors had twice as many infections as the other children (17.5 vs 9.0; P = .006). Conclusions: Early childhood infections may play an important role in the pathogenesis of T1D. Current findings may reflect either differences in microbial exposures or early immunological aberrations making diabetes‐prone children more susceptible to infections. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Vitamin D has immunomodulatory properties, such as regulation of FOXP3 expression and regulatory T-cell activity. Our aim was to investigate whether plasma 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D] concentrations associate with the development of β-cell autoimmunity and the transcriptional activity of FOXP3 or vitamin D3 convertase gene (CYP27B1) in CD4+ memory T cells.Methods: We studied 83 Finnish and 32 Estonian children participating in the DIABIMMUNE and DIPP studies. Twenty-nine Finnish and six Estonian children tested positive for at least one diabetes-associated autoantibody. The plasma concentrations of 25(OH)D and 1,25(OH)₂D were analysed with an enzyme immunoassay. Gene expression of FOXP3 and CYP27B1 in the isolated CD4+ memory T cells was studied with reverse transcription quantitative polymerase chain reaction.Results: Vitamin D status did not differ between subjects positive and negative for β-cell autoantibodies. Finnish children had higher vitamin D status than Estonian children (p < 0.001). FOXP3 expression was higher in Estonian CD4+ memory T-cell samples than in Finnish samples (p < 0.01) even when including in both groups only children with serum 25(OH)D concentrations in the range of 50-80 nmol/L (p < 0.001).Conclusions: These findings do not support a crucial role of circulating 25(OH)D as a regulator of β-cell autoimmunity or FOXP3 expression. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND: Human leukocyte antigen (HLA) genotypes associated with increased risk for type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1D) have been reported to be associated with increased birth weight. We set out to investigate the association between HLA haplotypes conferring risk for T1D and birth weight and search for possible differences in the strength of these associations among populations with contrasting incidence of T1D. METHODS: As a part of the EU-funded DIABIMMUNE study, genotyping for the HLA haplotypes associated with T1D was performed in 8369 newborn infants from Estonia, Finland and Russian Karelia. Infants born before 35 gestational weeks, from mothers with diabetes, and multiple pregnancies were excluded. Relative birth weight, expressed in standard deviation scores, was estimated for each gestational week, sex and country. The standard deviation scores were calculated internally using the actual population studied. According to their HLA haplotypes, participants were divided into risk groups, and the distribution of birth weight between quartiles was analysed. RESULTS: We did not find any direct association between various HLA risk-associated genotypes (HLA DR3-DQ2/DR4-DQ8, DR3-DQ2/X or DR4-DQ8/X) and birth weight. We observed a significant relationship between increased relative birth weight and the protective HLA-DR2-DQ6 and DR13-DQ6 haplotypes. This association was significant only when these haplotypes were found together with the DR4-DQ8 haplotype. CONCLUSIONS: The previously reported association between HLA-risk haplotypes for T1D and an increased birth weight was not confirmed. This suggests that the mechanisms behind the association between high birth weight and risk for T1D may be not directly HLA related. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]