Identification of Tyrosine Phosphatase 2(256–760) Construct as a New, Sensitive Marker for the Detection of Islet Autoimmunity in Type 2 Diabetic Patients

Abstract

OBJECTIVE—The presence of autoantibodies to islet antigens GAD and/or tyrosine phosphatase 2 (IA-2) in type 2 diabetic patients (latent autoimmune diabetes in adults [LADA]) identifies subjects at high risk to develop insulin dependency. The aim of this study was to dissect humoral anti–IA-2 immune response in Caucasian LADA patients, identifying the most sensitive construct to evaluate IA-2 immunoreactivity and comparing LADA IA-2 epitope specificities to those found in type 1 diabetes. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS—We analyzed 177 LADA and 978 type 2 diabetic patients with different disease duration, collected in a nationwide Italian survey, the Non–Insulin Requiring Autoimmune Diabetes (NIRAD) study aimed at assessing prevalence and characteristics of autoimmune diabetes in type 2 diabetic patients and 106 newly diagnosed type 1 diabetic patients (53 children, 53 adults). By radioimmunoassay, we analyzed humoral immunoreactivity to seven IA-2 constructs: IA-2PTP (687–979), IA-2(761–964), IA-2(256–760), IA-2JM (601–630), IA-2IC (605–979), IA-2BDC (256–556:630–979), and IA-2FL (1–979). RESULTS—IA-2(256–760) fragment was identified as the marker with the highest sensitivity for detection of humoral IA-2 immunoreactivity in LADA patients, identifying IA-2 autoantibodies in ∼30% of GAD antibody (GADA)-positive LADA patients and in 3.4% of GADA-negative type 2 diabetic patients. LADA IA-2(256–760)A positivity was associated with an increased frequency of autoimmune diabetes HLA-susceptible genotypes and with a higher risk for developing thyroid autoimmunity compared with autoantibody-negative type 2 diabetic patients. At disease diagnosis, adult-onset type 1 diabetic and LADA patients showed a lower IA-2 COOH-terminal immunoreactivity compared with childhood-onset type 1 diabetic patients. CONCLUSIONS—IA-2 immunoreactivity in LADA patients has thus far been underestimated, and IA-2(256–760) autoantibody detection may represent a novel diagnostic tool for the identification of islet autoimmunity in these patients.