Type 1 Diabetes: Genetics and Environmental Factors
Diabetes mellitus is a disease due to high levels of glucose in the body. Glucose is a sugar that our bodies use as an energy source and is broken down by insulin. Insulin is produced by the pancreas in order to maintain a balanced amount of sugar in the body. There are two types of diabetes however I will only be focusing on Type 1 Diabetes. Type 1 Diabetes is more commonly seen in children and adolescents however 50% of onset is after the age of 20.
Symptoms that result, from the lack or little production of insulin in the body, are severe thirst, frequent urination and sugar in the urine. Ways of treating this deficiency is through the injections of insulin into the body. 90% of people affected by type one diabetes are insulin dependent because their beta cells (cells in the pancreas that produce insulin) are damaged by their own immune system. Thus, Diabetes is an auto-immune disease.
Type 1 Diabetes is not only inherited however environmental factors must also be present in order for someone to become stricken with the disease. Mutations in the genes which encode the proteins in the HLA (human leukocyte antigen) system cause the onset of Type 1 Diabetes. The HLA system is responsible for making white blood cells with antigens (proteins). This allows the body's immune system to know that the marked cells are part of it self and will not attack them.
These mutations occur in the genes of the parents and are passed down to their offspring. If both parents contribute mutated genes then that offspring has a higher probability of developing the disease. However having one of the mutated genes can also cause the person to have a predisposition for Type 1 Diabetes. The probability of developing Type 1 Diabetes increases as the amount of siblings and parents have the disease.
Environmental conditions that play a role in developing Type 1 Diabetes include viruses and there is thought to be other factors that have not yet been determined. The virus could be one whose DNA contains information that is encoded with information that causes a mutation in the HLA systems' proteins. Viruses are nonliving organisms that cannot reproduce (make copies of its DNA) on its own. Therefore, viruses use a host, in this case a person, to inject their DNA into which will be incorporated into their DNA. Once the DNA has been transposed into the persons' DNA, the virus' DNA will be replicated and the newly created viruses will invade the cell that their information was replicated in and cause the cell to go through apoptosis. And the new viruses are now able to invade other cells.
In conclusion, Type 1 Diabetes is a heritable autoimmune disease that attacks the pancreas leading to its malfunction and the persons' inability to break down glucose. It occurs in adolescents and children. The predisposition for the disease and some environmental factors play a role in the development of the disease. The more siblings and parents that have the disease, the greater the risk of developing the disease is. Mutations in the genes that encode for the proteins that are part of the HLA system are a factor of Type 1 Diabetes. Environmental factors include the transposition of viral DNA into human DNA that may cause a mutation in the HLA systems' genes.
Symptoms that result, from the lack or little production of insulin in the body, are severe thirst, frequent urination and sugar in the urine. Ways of treating this deficiency is through the injections of insulin into the body. 90% of people affected by type one diabetes are insulin dependent because their beta cells (cells in the pancreas that produce insulin) are damaged by their own immune system. Thus, Diabetes is an auto-immune disease.
Type 1 Diabetes is not only inherited however environmental factors must also be present in order for someone to become stricken with the disease. Mutations in the genes which encode the proteins in the HLA (human leukocyte antigen) system cause the onset of Type 1 Diabetes. The HLA system is responsible for making white blood cells with antigens (proteins). This allows the body's immune system to know that the marked cells are part of it self and will not attack them.
These mutations occur in the genes of the parents and are passed down to their offspring. If both parents contribute mutated genes then that offspring has a higher probability of developing the disease. However having one of the mutated genes can also cause the person to have a predisposition for Type 1 Diabetes. The probability of developing Type 1 Diabetes increases as the amount of siblings and parents have the disease.
Environmental conditions that play a role in developing Type 1 Diabetes include viruses and there is thought to be other factors that have not yet been determined. The virus could be one whose DNA contains information that is encoded with information that causes a mutation in the HLA systems' proteins. Viruses are nonliving organisms that cannot reproduce (make copies of its DNA) on its own. Therefore, viruses use a host, in this case a person, to inject their DNA into which will be incorporated into their DNA. Once the DNA has been transposed into the persons' DNA, the virus' DNA will be replicated and the newly created viruses will invade the cell that their information was replicated in and cause the cell to go through apoptosis. And the new viruses are now able to invade other cells.
In conclusion, Type 1 Diabetes is a heritable autoimmune disease that attacks the pancreas leading to its malfunction and the persons' inability to break down glucose. It occurs in adolescents and children. The predisposition for the disease and some environmental factors play a role in the development of the disease. The more siblings and parents that have the disease, the greater the risk of developing the disease is. Mutations in the genes that encode for the proteins that are part of the HLA system are a factor of Type 1 Diabetes. Environmental factors include the transposition of viral DNA into human DNA that may cause a mutation in the HLA systems' genes.