Cookies on this website

We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you click 'Accept all cookies' we'll assume that you are happy to receive all cookies and you won't see this message again. If you click 'Reject all non-essential cookies' only necessary cookies providing core functionality such as security, network management, and accessibility will be enabled. Click 'Find out more' for information on how to change your cookie settings.

NOD.Idd3/5 congenic mice have insulin-dependent diabetes (Idd) regions on chromosomes 1 (Idd5) and 3 (Idd3) derived from the nondiabetic strains B10 and B6, respectively. NOD.Idd3/5 mice are almost completely protected from type 1 diabetes (T1D) but the genes within Idd3 and Idd5 responsible for the disease-altering phenotype have been only partially characterized. To test the hypothesis that candidate Idd genes can be identified by differential gene expression between activated CD4+ T cells from the diabetes-susceptible NOD strain and the diabetes-resistant NOD.Idd3/5 congenic strain, genome-wide microarray expression analysis was performed using an empirical Bayes method. Remarkably, 16 of the 20 most differentially expressed genes were located in the introgressed regions on chromosomes 1 and 3, validating our initial hypothesis. The two genes with the greatest differential RNA expression on chromosome 1 were those encoding decay-accelerating factor (DAF, also known as CD55) and acyl-coenzyme A dehydrogenase, long chain, which are located in the Idd5.4 and Idd5.3 regions, respectively. Neither gene has been implicated previously in the pathogenesis of T1D. In the case of DAF, differential expression of mRNA was extended to the protein level; NOD CD4+ T cells expressed higher levels of cell surface DAF compared with NOD.Idd3/5 CD4+ T cells following activation with anti-CD3 and -CD28. DAF up-regulation was IL-4 dependent and blocked under Th1 conditions. These results validate the approach of using congenic mice together with genome-wide analysis of tissue-specific gene expression to identify novel candidate genes in T1D.

Original publication

DOI

10.4049/jimmunol.180.2.1071

Type

Journal article

Journal

Journal of immunology (Baltimore, Md. : 1950)

Publication Date

01/2008

Volume

180

Pages

1071 - 1079

Addresses

Division of Rheumatology and Immunology, School of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15261, USA.

Keywords

CD4-Positive T-Lymphocytes, Th1 Cells, Animals, Mice, Congenic, Mice, Inbred NOD, Mice, Diabetes Mellitus, Type 1, Acyl-CoA Dehydrogenase, Long-Chain, Interleukin-4, Oligonucleotide Array Sequence Analysis, Gene Expression Profiling, Up-Regulation, Genome, CD55 Antigens