Gluten-free diet prevents diabetes in NOD mice

Background Epidemiological as well as animal studies have shown that enviro nmental factors such as nutrition contribute to the development of diabetes . In this study we investigated whether the early introduction of a gluten- free diet can influence the onset and/or incidence of diabetes, as well as insulitis and the number of gut mucosal lymphocytes, in non-obese diabetic (NOD) mice. Methods Gluten-free and standard Altromin diets (with the same milk protein and vitamin content) were given to breeding pairs of NOD mice as well as t o the first generation of NOD female mice, which were then observed for 320 days. Results A substantially lower diabetes incidence (chi(2)=15.8, p=0.00007) w as observed in NOD mice on the gluten-free diet (15%, n=27) compared to mic e on the standard diet (64%, n=28). In addition, mice on the gluten-free di et developed diabetes significantly later (244+/-24 days SEM) compared to t hose on the standard diet (197+/-8 days, p=0.03). No differences in the num ber of CD3(+), TCR-gamma delta(+), IgA(+), and IgM(+) cells in the small in testine were observed. Conclusion We showed that gluten-free diet both delayed and to a large exte nt prevented diabetes in NOD mice that have never been exposed to gluten. C opyright (C) 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.