1. Treg gene signatures predict and measure type 1 diabetes trajectory.
- Author
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Pesenacker AM, Chen V, Gillies J, Speake C, Marwaha AK, Sun A, Chow S, Tan R, Elliott T, Dutz JP, Tebbutt SJ, and Levings MK
- Subjects
- Adolescent, Adult, Algorithms, Canada, Computational Biology, Cross-Sectional Studies, Diabetes Mellitus, Type 1 genetics, Diabetes Mellitus, Type 1 therapy, Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2, Gene Expression Regulation, Genotype, Humans, Immunotherapy, Leukocytes, Mononuclear, RNA, Messenger metabolism, Young Adult, Biomarkers analysis, Diabetes Mellitus, Type 1 immunology, T-Lymphocytes, Regulatory immunology
- Abstract
Background: Multiple therapeutic strategies to restore immune regulation and slow type 1 diabetes (T1D) progression are in development and testing. A major challenge has been defining biomarkers to prospectively identify subjects likely to benefit from immunotherapy and/or measure intervention effects. We previously found that, compared with healthy controls, Tregs from children with new-onset T1D have an altered Treg gene signature (TGS), suggesting that this could be an immunoregulatory biomarker., Methods: nanoString was used to assess the TGS in sorted Tregs (CD4+CD25hiCD127lo) or peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) from individuals with T1D or type 2 diabetes, healthy controls, or T1D recipients of immunotherapy. Biomarker discovery pipelines were developed and applied to various sample group comparisons., Results: Compared with controls, the TGS in isolated Tregs or PBMCs was altered in adult new-onset and cross-sectional T1D cohorts, with sensitivity or specificity of biomarkers increased by including T1D-associated SNPs in algorithms. The TGS was distinct in T1D versus type 2 diabetes, indicating disease-specific alterations. TGS measurement at the time of T1D onset revealed an algorithm that accurately predicted future rapid versus slow C-peptide decline, as determined by longitudinal analysis of placebo arms of START and T1DAL trials. The same algorithm stratified participants in a phase I/II clinical trial of ustekinumab (αIL-12/23p40) for future rapid versus slow C-peptide decline., Conclusion: These data suggest that biomarkers based on measuring TGSs could be a new approach to stratify patients and monitor autoimmune activity in T1D., Funding: JDRF (1-PNF-2015-113-Q-R, 2-PAR-2015-123-Q-R, 3-SRA-2016-209-Q-R, 3-PDF-2014-217-A-N), the JDRF Canadian Clinical Trials Network, the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases of the National Institutes of Health (UM1AI109565 and FY15ITN168), and BCCHRI.
- Published
- 2019
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