We always associate diabetes with elderly people or obese individuals, while scientists have discovered some shocking facts about newborns.
Scientists warn that newborn babies can already have diabetes, which can harm your baby’s health.
They revealed that some babies develop diabetes within the first six months of life, challenging parents and caregivers.
Researchers from the University of Exeter, together with other international partners, have discovered a rare ‘new type of diabetes’ that affects babies at a young age.
The research shows that this health condition is caused by changes in a single gene that prevent insulin-producing cells from working properly.
The latest findings indicated that a newly identified genetic condition causes diabetes in some newborns by disrupting the cells that produce insulin.
The research team determined that mutations were mentioned in a gene TMEM167A responsible for this rare type of monogenic diabetes, called ‘Neonatal Diabetes Monogenic NDM.’
In more than 85 percent of such cases, the condition is caused by hereditary changes in the DNA.
Dr. Elisa de Franco from the University of Exeter explained: “Finding the DNA changes that cause diabetes in babies gives us a unique way to find the genes that play a key role in making and secreting insulin.”
How Diabetes Affects Newborns:
The new scientific research also links diabetes to brain disorders and offers new clues about how the disease begins.
Researchers said that when insulin cells fail, blood sugar levels rise and diabetes develops, often in addition to neurological problems.
The team of researchers examined six children who not only had diabetes, but also had neurological disorders such as ‘epilepsy and microcephaly’.
The results underlined a single genetic cause behind both the metabolic and neurological symptoms.
The team found that all six children shared mutations in the same gene.
To better understand how this gene affects the body, scientists used stem cells that were converted into pancreatic beta cells, the cells responsible for making insulin.
They also used gene editing techniques to change the gene responsible. The experiments showed that when this specific gene is damaged, insulin-producing cells lose their ability to function normally.
As stress builds up in the cells, they activate internal stress responses that ultimately lead to cell death.
Researchers say the latest finding could also help study more common forms of diabetes, a condition that currently affects nearly 589 million people worldwide.
The new insights could help clarify the biological steps involved in insulin production and cell survival.
This study was supported by Diabetes UK, the European Foundation for Studying Diabetes and the Exeter Biomedical Research Centre.
The research article, titled ‘Recessive TMEM167A variants cause neonatal diabetes, microcephaly and epilepsy syndrome’ was first published in The Journal of Clinical Research.
Moreover, the study suggests that parents should get their newborns checked by taking all necessary tests to monitor and control diabetes or prediabetes at an early stage.
Early Signs and Symptoms of Diabetes in Newborns:
• Poor weight gain or growth retardation
• Frequent urination
• Increased thirst and dehydration
• Elevated blood sugar levels – found in blood or urine tests
• In severe cases, the life-threatening condition can also be characterized by high levels of ketones in the blood.
For a proper diagnosis, doctors suggest that neonatal diabetes can be evaluated by a series of tests, including blood glucose tests, antibody tests and genetic tests.
