Our knowledge and understanding of the immune mechanisms involved in the pathogenesis of type 1 diabetes (T1D) are rapidly growing, supporting the design of innovative disease-modifying therapies that can prevent, delay, or reverse disease progression. Still, T1D research faces significant research gaps on how to apply “the right therapy at the right time, to the right individual.” Here we want to use a translational approach, exploiting our expertise in the use of animal models of T1D and our unique access to human data and samples: [1] to define the temporal (and spatial) evolution of immune cell phenotypes in T1D initiation and progression towards clinical disease onset; [2] to identify predictive and prognostic biomarkers of anti-CD3, low-dose anti-thymocyte globulin (ATG), and verapamil therapies; [3] to fine-tune optimal timings of interventions; and [4] to propose and test combination therapies.
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