Scientists have found a new type of diabetes in babies under six months of age
An international team of scientists has discovered a new type of diabetes in babies, under six months of age.
Some babies develop diabetes before the age of six months. In over 85 per cent of cases, this is due to a genetic mutation in their DNA.
Using advanced DNA sequencing technologies and a new model of stem cell research the team from the University of Exeter in the UK and Université Libre de Bruxelles (ULB) identified mutations in the TMEM167A gene -- responsible for a rare form of neonatal diabetes.
They found that in six children with additional neurological disorders such as epilepsy and microcephaly there was alterations in the TMEM167A gene.
"Finding the DNA changes that cause diabetes in babies gives us a unique way to find the genes that play key roles in making and secre...