Could Type 2 Diabetes Be an Autoimmune Disease?
In a recent Stanford University study, researchers found that obese men with diabetes had a distinct group of antibodies against cellular proteins that were not present in a group of obese men who did NOT have diabetes. Type 2 diabetes therefore, like Type 1, may also be an autoimmune disease, but the immune system's target cells are different,
"We are in the process of redefining one of the most common diseases in America as an autoimmune disease, rather than a purely metabolic disease," Daniel Winer, endocrine pathologist now at the University of Toronto, said in a statement. "This work will change the way people think about obesity, and will likely impact medicine for years to come as physicians begin to switch their focus to immune-modulating treatments for Type 2 diabetes."
