Scientists at the Jupiter, Florida campus of The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) have successfully tested a potent synthetic compound that prevents type 1 diabetes in animal models of the disease. “The animals in our study never developed high blood sugar indicative of diabetes, and beta cell damage was significantly reduced compared to animals that hadn’t been treated with our compound,” said Laura Solt, Ph.D., a TSRI biologist who was the lead author of the study, published in the March 2015 issue of Endocrinology. The article is titled “ROR Inverse Agonist Suppresses Insulitis and Prevents Hyperglycemia in a Mouse Model of Type 1 Diabetes.” Type 1 diabetes is a consequence of the autoimmune destruction of insulin-producing beta cells in the pancreas. While standard treatment for the disease aims to replace lost insulin, the new study focuses instead on the possibility of preventing the initial devastation caused by the immune system—stopping the disease before it even gets started. In the study, the scientists tested an experimental compound known as SR1001 in non-obese diabetic animal models. The compound targets a pair of “nuclear receptors” (RORα and RORg) that play critical roles in the development of a specific population (Th17) of immune cells associated with the disease. “Because Th17 cells have been linked to a number of autoimmune diseases, including multiple sclerosis, we thought our compound might inhibit Th17 cells in type 1 diabetes and possibly interfere with disease progression,” said Dr. Solt. “We were right.” The researchers found that SR1001 eliminated the incidence of diabetes and minimized insulitis, which is the inflammation associated with, and destroyer of, insulin-producing cells, in the treated animals.Login Or Register To Read Full Story