Abstract
The incidence of type 1 diabetes (T1D) has been increasing among children and adolescents, in which environmental factors, including gut microbiota, play an important role. However, the underlying mechanisms are yet to be determined. Here, we show that patients with newly diagnosed T1D displayed not only a distinct profile of gut microbiota associated with decreased short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) production, but also an altered IgA-mediated immunity compared with healthy control subjects. Using germ-free NOD mice, we demonstrate that gut microbiota from patients with T1D promoted different IgA-mediated immune responses compared with healthy control gut microbiota. Treatment with the SCFA, acetate, reduced gut bacteria–induced IgA response accompanied by decreased severity of insulitis in NOD mice. We believe our study provides new insights into the functional effects of gut microbiota on inducing IgA immune response in T1D, suggesting that SCFAs might be potential therapeutic agents in T1D prevention and/or treatment.
Authors
Juan Huang, James A. Pearson, Jian Peng, Youjia Hu, Sha Sha, Yanpeng Xing, Gan Huang, Xia Li, Fang Hu, Zhiguo Xie, Yang Xiao, Shuoming Luo, Chen Chao, F. Susan Wong, Zhiguang Zhou, Li Wen
Figure 1
Stool SCFA production and bacteria-targeting IgA response in individuals with T1D compared with control subjects.
