Methods for distinguishing type-1 from type-2 diabetes

摘要

The present invention provides a new method for the prediction of, or diagnosis of, auto-immune diseases, thereby alerting the subject to the presence of, or propensity to develop, an auto-immune disease so that preventative or therapeutic regiments may be initiated or changed so as to treat, modulate or prevent expansion of the CD4^loCD40^hi T cell population responsible for the destructive inflammation. The invention also discloses agents which modulate, treat or prevent expansion of CD4^loCD40^hi T cells. In one embodiment, the method is predictive of type 1 diabetes. Furthermore, the present invention provides a new method for distinguishing type 1 from type 2 diabetes.