A collaborative genomics platform for type 1 diabetes in Eastern and Central Europe

Genomic studies of type 1 diabetes have largely concentrated on Western European and North American cohorts, leaving Eastern and Central European populations under-represented and limiting the portability of genetic risk scores across regional ancestries. We established a resilient, ethically governed type 1 diabetes genomics platform spanning Ukraine and Poland, targeting 20,000 participants. In Ukraine, individuals with clinically confirmed type 1 diabetes and frequency-matched control participants are recruited through 85 physicians across 21 sites. More than 170 harmonised clinical and laboratory variables are captured in REDCap and linked to a biobank, with consent for data release, re-contact and broad molecular profiling. Whole-exome sequencing is performed at the Regeneron Genetics Center (NY, USA), complemented by pilot multi-omic assays. As of April 2026, the cohort comprised 6947 participants with type 1 diabetes and 7036 control participants, with 6363 individuals with type 1 diabetes and 6687 control participants in the complete-data analytic subset. Molecular profiling includes 9666 whole-exome sequences (mean 50.6 ×), with pilot whole-genome, HLA long-read, RNA-seq, microbiome and DNA-methylation datasets under way, all under EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)-compliant controlled access. This platform establishes one of the first large-scale, re-contactable genomic resources for type 1 diabetes in Eastern and Central Europe and offers a transferable model for population-specific research in other under-represented European settings.