BRANFORD, Conn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--A study by Nejentsev et al. published online today in Science reports that researchers have discovered a group of rare variants in a disease-associated gene that appear to lower the risk of developing type 1 diabetes (T1D). The study, conducted by scientists at the Wellcome Trust/JDRF Diabetes and Inflammation Laboratory at the University of Cambridge, used deep sequencing with the Genome Sequencer FLX system from 454 Life Sciences to re-sequence ten candidate genes including those previously identified by genome-wide associated studies (GWAS) of T1D. The study presents a novel insight into the genetic basis of type 1 diabetes, a common autoimmune disorder that results in the destruction of insulin-producing pancreatic cells. Also, the study marks one of the first of its kind in discovering a number of protective T1D alleles directly from the results of a previously conducted GWAS. The findings and pioneering scientific method will ultimately provide the knowledge to develop better strategies to detect, treat and prevent T1D and other genetic-based diseases in the future.
