Geographic location determines beta-cell autoimmunity among adult Ghanaians: Findings from the RODAM study.

Introduction: Beta-cell autoantibodies are established markers of autoimmunity, which we compared between Ghanaian adults with or without diabetes, living in rural and urban Ghana and in three European cities.

Methods: In the multicenter cross-sectional Research on Obesity and Diabetes among African Migrants (RODAM) study (N = 5898), we quantified autoantibodies against glutamic acid decarboxylase (GAD65Ab) by radioligand binding assay (RBA) and established cut-offs for positivity by displacement analysis. In a subsample, we performed RBA for zinc transporter-8 autoantibodies (ZnT8Ab).

Atypical forms of diabetes mellitus in Africans and other non-European ethnic populations in low- and middle-income countries: a systematic literature review.

Background: Atypical presentations of diabetes mellitus (DM) have been reported in non-European ethnic populations under various names. It is unclear whether those names are used for the same or different clinical phenotypes. Unclear terminology may lead to inappropriate treatment and an underestimation of the burden caused by atypical diabetes phenotypes overlapping with classic types of diabetes.