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Background: Type 1 Diabetes (T1D) is an autoimmune disease affecting mainly children and young adults. Early-stage immunological understanding is crucial for diagnosis and treatment. This study explores the immune environment in T1D patients' peripheral blood, focusing on early disease phases. Methods: The study involved 10 T1D patients under 7 years, diagnosed within 1 year, and 10 age- and sex-matched healthy controls. Single-cell RNA sequencing was utilized to analyze peripheral blood samples for disease-related characteristics. Results: The analysis revealed a distinct immunological profile in T1D, with increased CD14Mono, CD4TEM, and CD4Treg cells and decreased CD4T naïve cells compared to controls. CD14Mono cells in T1D were enriched in stress pathways linked to viral infection and substance transport. Besides immunological and inflammatory traits, CD4TEM cells were associated with enzyme activity and metabolism, while CD4Treg cells focused on cell adhesion pathways. Cell interactions and trajectories indicated transformations among CD4T cells, suggesting CD4Tregs' role in early-stage self-repair, with CXCR4 as a key chemotactic factor. Conclusion: This study offers a detailed immunological perspective of early-onset T1D, emphasizes the complexity of T1D's immune response and the importance of cellular dynamics and signaling pathways. Disclosure L. Pan: None. Y. Shi: None. T. Yue: None. H. Tan: None. Y. Ding: None. S. Luo: None. C. Guo: None. X. Zheng: None. J. Weng: None. Funding the National Natural Science Foundation (82100822); the Strategic Priority Research Program of Chinese Academy of Sciences (XDB38000000); the Program for Innovative Research Team of The First Affiliated Hospital of USTC (CXGG02); and the Anhui Provincial Natural Science Foundation (2008085MH248, 2008085MH278)
PAN et al. (Fri,) studied this question.