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Genetics of Diabetes

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Diana_France

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I'm a genealogist, so often wonder about the lives of our ancestors on both sides of the family. I know my Dad had type 2, and so does my brother in law. I suspect my Grandma (Dad's Mum) had diabetes too, although she may not have realised it, because she had several symptoms of the complications, but I have no idea whether any of the other names in the family tree were diabetic. Certainly we didn't think of diabetes as being a family risk on my side or my husband's, and coming from humble stock we are more likely to find TB as cause of death on death certificates. Indeed, I wonder when Diabetes would have started to be cited as a cause of death?

I have two sons, and both have now been diagnosed with Type 1, one aged 24 the other aged 32. So where has this come from? It must have been in the genes somewhere, dozing away on each side until coming together with me and my husband and hitting this generation. I know a diabetic's siblings have a 6% higher chance of being diabetic themselves. Does propensity for Type 1 indicate higher risks of Type 2 among other relatives?

So what of the future? What is the likelihood of our grandchildren (as yet unborn) being diabetic? Does having a diabetic parent mean that children will develop diabetes symptoms earlier in life than the parent did?

I would be most interested to read about research into the genetics, can anyone point me towards relevant material? Does this note ring any bells among other families?
 
It'#s complex!
The pattern of inheritance in T1 seems to be a bit clearer in T1 than T2 were there seem to be more possible genes and environmental factors in play.
Have a look at these
http://www.genetics.edu.au/pdf/factsheets/fs57.pdf
http://www.genetichealth.com/dbts_genet ... etes.shtml
http://www.genetichealth.com/DBTS_Genet ... etes.shtml

This paper suggests that that the 2 are not related...but I remember recently something about some forms of T2 having an autoimmune element . I think scientists knowledge about these things is still very much in a state of flux
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/article ... ool=pubmed
 
I recently discovered that my Grandad's sister had type 1 - so it's skipped a generation and ended up with lucky old me! Up until then, I'd not been able to work out where my type 1 had come from!
 
I am the only T1 diabetic in my family, neither my father or mother's family members have had diabetes. My daughter is now 26yrs and as yet doesn't have it :o)
 
I think Pheonix sums it up perfectly , it is complex!

My DSN was telling me about a whole family she treats with it Mum,Dad and three siblings. Also if you look back through posts there was a poster recently who posted in ask a question I think, and her whole family had it...You would have to do a search and maybe get in touch with her and see if she could help.

I don't think they know the cause and I'm sure there will be quiet a number, and also a number of predisposing factors that some of us just are not privy to. Along with Genetics ,viruses are cited , also some believe low grade allergies ,ie to Gluten causes "leaky Gut" which in turn causes the Auto immune response in our bodies very early on before organs and glands become damaged. Life style choices can cause Type 1 too. Excessive alcohol consumption can cause Pancreatitis which can lead to Diabetes.Obviously later on in life but the way some kids drink these days there will be more presenting with this as there are with early Liver disease.

Lots of variables, My family have Auto immune diseases , Hashimoto's disease, Rheumatoid arthritis, Pernicious Anemia . Metabolic derangement too, Hypercholesterolemia, . Which has been speculated on whether this from childhood was the cause of my Type 1....probably a combination of this and the Auto immune disease , as I have other Auto immune diseases, who knows for sure. Blimey I'm depressing myself now looking at that lot :lol:

But an interesting post and topic Diane, I hope you get a lot of response
 
Fallenstar said:
Lots of variables, My family have Auto immune diseases , Hashimoto's disease, Rheumatoid arthritis, Pernicious Anemia . Metabolic derangement too, Hypercholesterolemia, . Which has been speculated on whether this from childhood was the cause of my Type 1....probably a combination of this and the Auto immune disease , as I have other Auto immune diseases, who knows for sure. Blimey I'm depressing myself now looking at that lot :lol:

But an interesting post and topic Diane, I hope you get a lot of response
Click to expand...

That's interesting - my mum has rheumatoid arthritis, diagnosed only a month after I was diagnosed with type 1 in 1983. We'd both been really poorly with a viral infection three months earlier and the we've often wondered whether that virus had triggered the auto-immune response.
 
I was asked when diagnosed with T1 17 years ago whether I'd had a cold/flu type illness recently. I had a bad cold about 2 months before diagnosis, 1 month before the first symptoms started.

I was told then & reading threads here, the theory is still the same, that there is a gene which creates a pre-disposition for diabetes, then an environmental trigger (a common cold type virus) causes the auto immune response. I was also told then that the predisposition was believed to deactivate in one's mid to late 20s which explains why T1 is rare after that age (I know not the truth of that last fact).

A parent with the defective gene (with T1 or not) has a 1:4 chance of passing it to their child, but unless the child comes into contact with the trigger virus, they will never develop T1 diabetes. That same child may still pass the gene onto their own children who may get the virus & develop T1, even though neither parent had the disease.

I'm no expert & haven't researched this, but this is what I was told back in 1994.

Incidentally, my father is T1 & his sister died of cancer of the pancreas which seems more than coincidental to me. My brother & his 3 children are free of it (I hope it stays that way re the kids).

I know nothing about T2.
 
Cheryl said:
I was told then & reading threads here, the theory is still the same, that there is a gene which creates a pre-disposition for diabetes, then an environmental trigger (a common cold type virus) causes the auto immune response.
Click to expand...

That's pretty much what I was told, too. My DSN told me that there was a one in 12 chance my kids would get diabetes themselves. I'm not sure what the chance of them having the gene is, though.
 
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