How autoimmunity and metabolism interact in type 1 diabetes
Models to study the synergy between autoimmunity and metabolism in T1D
This project makes personalized lab and mouse models from people with type 1 diabetes to see how their immune cells and insulin-making cells affect each other and metabolism.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Univ of Massachusetts Med Sch Worcester NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Worcester, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11251267 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
You or other people with type 1 diabetes could donate blood or skin cells that are turned into stem cells and then into insulin-producing islets. Those patient-derived islets will be paired with the person’s own immune cells and placed into specialized humanized mice and controlled lab tests so scientists can watch immune attacks and metabolic changes. The team will use advanced mouse strains that support human B cells and NK cells and will run metabolic profiling to trace molecules exchanged during inflammation. These models are built to mimic what happens in people with T1D so researchers can try treatment ideas in a human-relevant system before moving to human trials.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Ideal participants are people with type 1 diabetes willing to donate blood or tissue samples (or skin cells for iPSC generation) and share related clinical information.
Not a fit: People without type 1 diabetes or those seeking immediate new treatments are unlikely to get direct personal benefit from this lab- and model-focused work.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could reveal how immune attacks and metabolic changes combine to destroy insulin-producing cells and point to new targets to prevent or slow type 1 diabetes.
How similar studies have performed: Related approaches using iPSC-derived islets and humanized mice have shown promise, but combining autologous immune systems with detailed metabolic profiling is a relatively new and early-stage strategy.
Where this research is happening
Worcester, United States
- Univ of Massachusetts Med Sch Worcester — Worcester, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Brehm, Michael Allen — Univ of Massachusetts Med Sch Worcester
- Study coordinator: Brehm, Michael Allen
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.