July 1, 1997

      Data about a potential vaccine for preventing type I diabetes (autoimmune diabetes) was presented at the American Diabetes Association 57th annual scientific sessions in Boston.

      Anergen, Inc. announced that its scientists have completed a preclinical study on a cyclic peptide vaccine the results of which suggest an ability to delay and suppress the development of type I diabetes. In the study, non-obese diabetic (NOD) mice, the murine model for human type I diabetes, were treated with DiavaX(TM), a proprietary Anergen compound. DiavaX is composed of specific synthetic peptides that stimulate production of antibodies which block T cell activation, thereby potentially preventing the onset of diabetes. At the end of the study, 33% of the mice in the control group were free of diabetes as compared to 76% of the DiavaX(TM) treated mice. Mice treated with DiavaX(TM) developed anti-vaccine antibodies a week after the second boost; all mice treated with DiavaX(TM) were antibody positive after the third treatment. Histology of the pancreas of the control group and the DiavaX(TM) treated mice confirmed cellular infiltration of islets in placebo treated animals and showed a normal histology of islets in the treated animals.

      This research may be important to other T-cell mediated autoimmune diseases, such as rheumatoid arthritis.