Type 1 diabetes (T1D) is an autoimmune disease in which the insulin-producing beta cells are destroyed. Diabetic patients manage their hyperglycemia by daily insulin injections. However, insulin therapy is by no means a cure. Accordingly, a significant effort has been ongoing to develop immunotherapies that effectively prevent and/or treat T1D in the clinic. This review focuses on antigen- and antibody-based immunotherapies and discusses the respective strengths and weaknesses of these approaches.
Roland Tisch, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Mary Ellen Jones Bldg., Room 635, Campus Box 7290, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC 27599-7290, USA