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Juvenile diabetes, which currently affects more than 700,000 Americans, may be at least one step closer to prevention as a result of recent research performed at Argonne's Advanced Photon Source.
Important clues found in the research may lead to both cures for and prevention of the disease, formally known as Type 1 diabetes or insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus. The results are being published in the June issue of Nature Immunology, a scientific journal.
Researchers from Children's Hospital of Boston, the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, and the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute discovered the clues, which indicate that juvenile diabetes may be prevented in those people who carry genes for it. Research is still needed into how that will be done, but these results show that prevention is possible and indicate the areas of the DNA where preventive techniques would be effective.
Juvenile diabetes is a chronic condition in which the pancreas makes little or no insulin because certain cells have been destroyed due to an autoimmune disorder. The pancreatic islet cells, or "beta" cells, that produce insulin are mistakenly seen by the body as an "enemy." The body then creates antibodies (or antigens) to fight the "foreign" tissue. These antigens destroy the islet cells' insulin-producing capacity and the resulting lack of insulin brings on diabetes.
Symptoms of juvenile diabetes appear abruptly, although the damage to the beta cells may begin well before the disease becomes apparent. Prevention of the disease requires a thorough understanding of what biological differences trigger the autoimmune response against pancreatic islet cells. To gain that understanding, researchers need to know the structures and binding mechanisms of protein molecules that produce the antigens. This research advances that understanding.
Research has shown that juvenile diabetes sufferers carry certain genes coded for cell-surface proteins important in the production of islet cell antigens. In humans, these are called Major Histocompatibility Complex glycoproteins HLA-DQ8 and HLA-DQ2; similar genes are coded for proteins in mice, and are called I-Ag7. However, scientists don't yet know how these genes spark the destruction of insulin-producing cells.
The researchers applied X-ray crystallography techniques at the Advanced Photon Source (APS) beamline managed by the BioCARS Collaborative Access Team. They determined the three-dimensional structure of the glycoproteins and peptides -- the molecules that hydrolyze into amino acids and form the basic building blocks of proteins -- from insulin.
They have analyzed the size and composition of the peptide binding pockets of the human proteins compared to the mouse proteins.
The resulting similarities suggest that both humans and mice develop juvenile diabetes in the same way.
This discovery provides evidence that the mouse is a good model for the human disease and can be used as a test subject for research into prevention of juvenile diabetes, opening the way to aggressive research on prevention and treatment of the disease
Their research was funded by the National Institutes of Health and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute.
A technical summary of this research is available on the APS Web site.
Last year, more than 1,500 experimenters conducted a total of 1,178 experiments at the APS. These scientists represent more than 290 universities and medical schools, 47 industrial firms and 51 research institutions from the United States, Canada, and abroad.
-- Catherine Foster
Nobel Laureate F. Sherwood Rowland will speak on "Earth's Atmosphere in the 21st Century" at a Director's Special Colloquium Wednesday, May 16, at 3:30 p.m. in the Building 402 Conference Center.
Rowland's current research focuses on the composition of atmosphere in remote locations throughout the Pacific region, highly polluted cities and areas with special conditions like burning forests. Results from such a study led to the discovery that methyl bromide, which affects ozone concentrations in the stratosphere, has a seasonal cycle.
Rowland is Donald Bren research professor of chemistry and earth science at the University of California-Irvine. He shared the 1995 Nobel Prize in chemistry for his pioneering contributions to explaining how ozone is formed and decomposes through chemical processes in the atmosphere. His research showed how sensitive the ozone layer is to the influence of human-produced emissions of certain compounds. He has received several other prestigious international awards for his research.
Terry Surles, director of research at the California Energy Commission, will speak on the California energy crisis at a seminar at Argonne-East Tuesday, May 1.
The seminar, "Inside the California Energy Crisis" will begin at 3 p.m. in Building 212, Conference Room A157.
Surles has a front-row seat for the crisis that continues to plague the California energy supply system. He will describe origins of the situation and what actions need to be taken to end it.
Surles was formerly Argonne general manager for environmental sciences. He left Argonne to become an associate laboratory director at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. He joined the California Energy Commission, the state's primary energy policy and planning agency, in 2000.
An eight-session stress management course, "Hardiness Training," will be offered to employees at Argonne-East beginning Wednesday, May 9.
The course will be held every Wednesday from 1:30 - 2:45 p.m. in the Medical Department, Building 201.
The course was developed at the University of Chicago and is based on years of research on Illinois Bell Telephone managers going through the organizational stress of the AT&T divestiture of the 1980s.
The goal of the course is to improve employees' coping skills, and to increase strength and resiliency of personality and relationships.
The course will be led by Michael Atella and Heidi Quist, who provide psychological services in Argonne's Medical Department. The course format will include confidential small-group discussion and interactive lectures.
To register, call Lynn Valentini at ext. 2-2813. Registration is on a first-come, first-served basis.
In addition to being a practical tool to find phone numbers and addresses, this year's Argonne Directory showcases Argonne-East's environment.
The images used in this year's directory tell the tale of the natural beauty that is part of Argonne life, from the cover's red-tailed hawk to the blossoming apple tree at the corner of Meridian Road and Inner Circle.
Media services photographers keep an eye out for great nature shots as they drive to and from assignments. For example, George Joch (IPD), returning from an unrelated photo shoot, spied three baby raccoons playing by the cottages near Freund Lodge. He waited patiently until they ran up a tree and one looked him in the eye. Joch had to keep one eye out for the mother and the other attached to the camera.
"Nature photography requires patience, an understanding of animal habits and long lenses for the shots," explained Joch.
"It is also about luck," added photographer Stan Niehoff (IPD). The directory also includes a photograph of a young fallow deer fawn in the grass. On his way to lunch one day, Niehoff happened upon the newborn fawn struggling to stand by the Building 213 Cafeteria.
After running to retrieve his camera from Building 222, Niehoff shot a roll of film while animal rescue workers were on the way to help the fawn.
"The story had a happy ending -- the fawn was returned to a herd," he said.
The photographs are part of an Argonne nature photo collection captured by Media Services photographers that is available for environmental report covers, photo montages and wall art.
-- Evelyn Brown
Doreen T. Schoening (PFS-SS) and Roger Cooper (FAC-AW) have each won a $100 cash award for their IMPACT suggestions.
Schoening suggested revising the shipping
order form to clarify procedures for onsite transport of
hazardous materials to Building 5. Schoening also
suggested distributing a notice to alert employees of the potential
for safety problems until the shipping order is revised.
Cooper's suggestion resulted in changes to
the Argonne-West Electrician's Qualification Exam.
He pointed out that a test question on lockout/tagout
procedures may have been misleading. The test
question has been revised to ensure that the exam
presents accurate information.
The IMPACT Suggestion Program is a way for employees to improve the quality of Argonne's work environment by expressing concerns and suggesting ways to lower costs and improve safety, health and productivity.
Employees can earn special recognition and awards for suggestions that save the laboratory money or time, or will improve the environment, safety and health at Argonne.
For more information about the IMPACT program, call the IMPACT coordinator at ext. 2-9393.
A Social Security representative will be available to answer employees' questions Wednesday, May 16, from 8 a.m. to noon at Argonne-East's Human Resources office.
George Cutwright from the Joliet Social Security office can:
Enroll employees in Social Security.
Take applications for new social security
cards, whether they are original cards for newborns,
corrected cards due to marriage or replacement cards.
Help with earnings posting problems, and
answer general questions related to social security.
To schedule a meeting, call Fran Perri (HR) at ext. 2-2989.
A representative from MetLife will visit Argonne-East Tuesday, May 1, 15 and 29, to meet with individual employees and provide insurance comparisons and quotes for the "METPAY" group automobile and homeowners insurance program.
To schedule an appointment, call Craig Riddick at (630) 810-0346, ext. 143. Employees should fax their auto policy renewal statements to (630) 810-1628 before their appointments.
Human Resources has scheduled several classes at Argonne-East in May and June.
"CPS Review: Office
Administration/Communication" (HR327) covers office management
and organization, executive travel, records management, researching
and writing business reports and preparing
communications. The class will be held Wednesdays
and Fridays from May 2-June 1, from 11:30 a.m. -1
p.m. in Building 201, Room 238.
"Facilitating Effective Meetings" (HR636) will
teach participants a six-step meeting process and group
facilitation techniques. The class will be held Wednesday,
May 16, from 1 - 5 p.m. in Building 201, Room 190.
"Leadership and Motivation" (HR641) focuses on
the characteristics of leadership, employee motivation and
a motivation model that fosters highly motivated
employees. Class will be held Thursday, May 31, from noon - 5 p.m.,
in Building 201, Room 190.
"Dealing With Conflict in the Workplace"
(HR253) will help participants explore, develop and practice
specific conflict management techniques for the
workplace. Class will be held Wednesday, June 27,
from 8:30 a.m. - 5 p.m. in Building 201, Room 190.
Registration deadline is May 25.
To enroll, contact a Training Management System representative. Call Betty Iwan at ext. 2-3410 for more information on the classes visit the HR Web site or the Argonnet Web site.
