BB rat lyp mutation and type 1 diabetes

BioBreeding (BB) rats spontaneously develop an autoimmune diabetic syndrome similar to that observed in humans and NOD mice. One of the diabetes susceptibility loci maps to the lyp locus on chromosome 4. In this article we describe the consequences of the BB rat lyp mutation on T-cell homeostasis, repertoire and function, as well as its role in the pathogenesis of type I diabetes.