Recognizing the importance of early detection, several global and European screening initiatives (e.g., TrialNet, EDENT1FI, ELSA...) have been launched. Italy has taken the lead with a national law mandating routine screening for type 1 diabetes and celiac disease in children aged 1-17. These efforts improve early diagnosis, enable timely interventions, and expand opportunities for clinical trials and disease prevention strategies.
Stage 2 type 1 diabetes is a key window for intervention, as autoimmunity is already present, and blood glucose abnormalities begin to emerge before clinical symptoms appear. Targeting this stage offers a crucial opportunity to slow or prevent disease progression by preserving beta-cell function.
We hypothesize that our approach, manipulating lactate metabolism, will be particularly effective at this stage of type 1 diabetes development. Compared to the FDA-approved intervention with teplizumab, our strategy aims to provide a more targeted and potentially more effective approach to disease modulation.