Scripps Research professor awarded $3.2 million to advance type 1 diabetes research Support from the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases will help reveal how a newly discovered rare cell impacts the autoimmune disease.
October 29, 2025
LA JOLLA, CA Luc Teyton, professor in the Department of Immunology and Microbiology at Scripps Research, has received a four-year, $3.2 million grant from the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) to help answer how type 1 diabetes manifests and develop potential therapeutics to reverse or prevent the disease.
Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disease in which the immune system mistakenly attacks the cells that produce insulin a critical hormone that regulates the blood sugar of the body. Approximately 1.6 million Americans live with type 1 diabetes, and while genetics play a strong role in susceptibility, scientists still don't fully understand what initiates the autoimmune attack.
Collaborating with Assistant Professor Joseph Jardine, Teyton aims to understand how type 1 diabetes emerges by studying vascular-associated fibroblastic cells (VAFs). Although rare, VAFs act as molecular peacekeepers in the pancreas actively protecting insulin-producing cells from the immune system. Early research from Teyton and his lab suggests that type 1 diabetes may manifest when VAFs become overwhelmed, forcing the immune system to activate and destroy the valuable insulin-producing cells that balance the body's blood sugar levels.
Type 1 diabetes significantly impacts the lives of patients and their families, and despite decades of efforts to understand it, the inner workings of the disease are still a mystery, says Teyton. Discovering VAFs is just the tip of the iceberg. In the next phase of our research, we will use this funding to further explore how we might strengthen these cells in the face of inflammation potentially finding avenues to a cure.
Teyton's grant builds on a discovery his team published in Cell Reports in September 2025. Working with both mouse models and human pancreatic tissue, the researchers identified VAFs clustered around the insulin-producing regions of the pancreas. These cells were doing something unexpected: presenting pancreatic antigens fragments of proteins to the immune system.
Under normal circumstances, only specialized immune cells have the molecular machinery to present antigens, which alert the immune system to potential threats. Surprisingly, VAFs also express these molecules and display pancreatic components to passing immune cells. However, VAFs simultaneously express PD-L1, molecule that delivers inhibitory don't attack signals, creating a protective, balanced environment. When persistent inflammation occurs, VAFs dramatically increase their antigen presentation while their protective inhibitory signals remain constant. This imbalance heightened alarm signals without proportional all clear signals may inadvertently trigger the immune system to activate and destroy insulin-producing cells.
This finding challenged the conventional view of type 1 diabetes. Scientists had long assumed the disease began when immune cells infiltrated pancreatic islets the clusters that contain insulin-producing cells and attacked them directly. But when Teyton's team examined tissue from mice and humans, they found immune cells gathered exclusively outside the islets, not within them. The VAFs sat right at this boundary, positioned between the pancreatic islets and the blood vessels.
We've been looking in the wrong place, adds Teyton. For years, we assumed type 1 diabetes began inside the pancreatic islets. But our research suggests the real action is happening on the outside in cells that shouldn't be presenting pancreatic antigens to the immune system at all.
Now, the new NIDDK grant will allow Teyton's laboratory to dig deeper into these findings. The team will create a comprehensive analysis of all antigen-presenting cells in normal and pre-diabetic pancreatic islets. Using advanced techniques, they'll track how these cell populations change as the disease develops.
The team will also investigate why VAFs present only fragments of peptides, rather than traditional antigen-presenting immune cells that display whole proteins. Understanding more about this process could reveal specific targets for therapeutic intervention.
Unlocking how inflammation disrupts healthy function of the pancreas is also key. While inflammatory molecules have long been known to induce antigen presentation, recent evidence points to alternative pathways involving diet and gut-derived factors. The researchers will test various inflammatory signals in mice to understand what causes VAFs to shift from protective peacekeepers to potential troublemakers.
We hypothesize that communication between the gut and pancreas may drive the local inflammation that overwhelms VAFs, says Teyton. Understanding these triggers could reveal entirely new intervention points.
This grant will include research efforts as outlined in National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) grant #1UG3DK142188-01 which will employ models to study the initiation and progression of type 1 diabetes.
Immunology & Microbiology Teyton, Luc Jardine, Joseph
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
01/06/2026
January 6 2026, 05:30 (PST) Dolby Sets the New Standard for Premium Entertainment at CES 2026
Throughout the week, Dolby brings to life the latest innovatio...
02/05/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
01/05/2026
January 5 2026, 18:30 (PST) NBCUniversal's Peacock to Be First Streamer to ...
01/04/2026
January 4 2026, 18:00 (PST) DOLBY AND DOUYIN EMPOWER THE NEXT GENERATON OF CREATORS WITH DOLBY VISION
Douyin Users Can Now Create And Share Videos With Stun...
04/03/2026
Lega Basket Serie A (LBA), the governing body for Italy's premier basketball...
04/03/2026
Wrexham AFC co-chairmen Rob Mac and Ryan Reynolds will host a first-of-its-kind ...
04/03/2026
The countdown is underway and with just 100 days to go until the world's greatest sporting event begins on Thurs., June 11, FOX Sports, America's Englis...
04/03/2026
No matter where they are in the world, service members and veterans can stream N...
04/03/2026
Telemundo officially releases Somos M s, the anthem for the network's cove...
04/03/2026
The Hollywood Professional Association (HPA) concluded the 2026 HPA Tech Retreat, convening more than 800 industry leaders, technologists, creatives, and execut...
04/03/2026
Smith Entertainment Group transformed how local sports are consumed by creating ...
04/03/2026
The production method, which spans a distance of 36.2 miles, was designed and im...
04/03/2026
Haivision, a global provider of mission-critical, real-time video networking and...
04/03/2026
When Hugues Meyrath came out of retirement to take the helm as CEO of Quantum, i...
04/03/2026
Last week's launch of Banana Ball Championship League has spurred a significant upgrade of production facilities
The Savannah Bananas, arguably the hottest...
04/03/2026
sldkfjsdlfkjsldkfjsldkjfslkdjfslkdjfsl
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Ut elit tellus, luctus nec ullamcorper mattis, pulvinar dapibus...
04/03/2026
For many fans, a song's backstory can be just as compelling as the final pro...
04/03/2026
In 2006, Spotify was founded on the belief that technology could bring artists a...
04/03/2026
Spotify is back on the ground for the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, and we&#...
04/03/2026
Spotify had an energizing week in Sydney, Australia, filled with powerful conver...
04/03/2026
Earlier this year, we launched Directed By, a documentary-style series that pull...
04/03/2026
100 Days to Go: SBS Unveils World Class Team for The Greatest Show on Earth -The...
04/03/2026
KT and Rohde & Schwarz to showcase AI-enhanced radio transmission performance In a joint 6G AI proof-of-concept demonstration, the CMX500 one-box tester from ...
04/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
04/03/2026
Luxembourg, 3 March 2026 - SES S.A. has today published its 2025 Annual Report, following the announcement of the company's full year financial results for ...
04/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
04/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
04/03/2026
Luxembourg, March 3, 2026 - SES, a leading space solutions company, along with I...
04/03/2026
04 Mar 2026
VEON Partners with GSMA Innovation Fund to Accelerate Digital Innov...
04/03/2026
04 Mar 2026
VEON's Beeline Uzbekistan and Rakuten Symphony Partner for Open...
04/03/2026
Wednesday 4 March 2026
Sky Sports unveils plans for 2026 Formula 1 coverage
Sky Sports is preparing for one of the most highly anticipated F1 seasons in recen...
04/03/2026
Back to All News
Bloodhounds' Season 2 Gears Up for April 3 Premiere with ...
04/03/2026
Back to All News
Netflix Ads Suite Expands Capabilities
Business
04 March 2026
GlobalUnited States
Link copied to clipboard
After launching the Netflix Ad...
04/03/2026
Scripps Research welcomes healthcare innovator Joe Kiani to the Board of Directors Kiani brings decades of experience in patient safety and public service.
Mar...
04/03/2026
Nanoparticle vaccine approach takes on a new target: Hepatitis C virus Scripps Research scientists reengineer critical proteins on the surface of HCV, paving th...
03/03/2026
Beyond Sports, a Sony group company, and LIV Golf, the world's golf league, ...
03/03/2026
Ilitch Sports + Entertainment announces the launch of Detroit SportsNet (DSN), a year-round broadcast home for two of Detroit's franchises. With flexible op...
03/03/2026
Advanced Systems Group, LLC (ASG), a technology and services provider for media ...
03/03/2026
The PGA of America, NBC Sports and USA Sports extend their media rights agreemen...
03/03/2026
AI device ecosystem company HONOR enters into a strategic technical collaboratio...
03/03/2026
Cleveland's Telos Alliance, pioneers in broadcast technology for 30 years, l...
03/03/2026
The MD 9235 microphone head for wireless handhelds has been a firm favorite with many engineers and artists for its ability to cut through high on-stage levels ...
03/03/2026
Haivision Systems Inc. (Haivision), a global provider of mission-critical, real-...
03/03/2026
Broadcast Management Group (BMG) announces the expansion of its 62,000-square-fo...
03/03/2026
Maroon 5's musical tour in 2025 marked a leap forward in live audio as Monitor Engineer Dave Rupsch utilized Sennheiser's all-digital Spectera wireless ...
03/03/2026
Designed specifically for pro basketball, the renovated space at Gainbridge Fiel...
03/03/2026
As part of the move, former CEO Phillipp Lawo joins the broadcast-tech provider's Supervisory Board
Lawo has announced appointment of Jamie Dunn as chief e...
03/03/2026
A team of legendary announcers and analysts and a classic graphics look will bring the past to life
NBC Sports and Peacock will return to yesteryear for tonigh...
Scripps Research professor awarded $3.2 million to advance type 1 diabetes research Support from the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases will help reveal how a newly discovered rare cell impacts the autoimmune disease. 
