Harnessing CD8 T-cell exhaustion to treat type 1 diabetes

Abstract

Although immune interventions have shown great promise in type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1D) clinical trials, none are yet in routine clinical use or able to achieve insulin independence in patients. In addition to this, the principles of T1D treatment remain essentially unchanged since the isolation of insulin, almost a century ago. T1D is characterized by insulin deficiency as a result of destruction of insulin-producing beta cells mediated by autoreactive T cells. Therapies that target beta-cell antigen-specific T cells are needed to prevent T1D. CD8+ T-cell exhaustion is an emerging area of research in chronic infection, cancer immunotherapy, and more recently, autoimmunity. Recent data sugg..