Sumaya Mohayideen Poster 2025

Miss Sumaya Mohayideen

Kumasi Centre for Collaborative Research in Tropical Medicine, Ghana

Lower HbA1c and Increased Monocyte Activation in BCG-Vaccinated Type 1 Diabetes Patients in Ghana

Poster Abstract

The Bacille Calmette-Guérin (BCG) vaccine has non-specific health benefits beyond tuberculosis prevention, including modulating immune mechanisms to improve various immune-mediated diseases. Recent studies suggest that BCG vaccination in patients with type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM) can trigger epigenetic and metabolic changes in immune cells, enhancing glucose utility and glycemic control. However, the specific immune mechanisms underlying BCG’s effects on T1DM remain unknown. This study investigated these mechanisms by examining Ghanaian T1DM patients with and without neonatal BCG vaccination.

A case-control design included T1DM patients (n=108) and age and sex-matched healthy controls (n=216) from Ghana. T1DM disease-related clinical and immunophenotypic parameters were analysed and compared based on neonatal BCG vaccination status. Also, a sub-cohort of BCG-vaccinated and unvaccinated T1DM patients (n=17 each) and controls was comprehensively profiled for monocyte markers. Correlation of immune markers and clinical parameters of T1DM was performed.

Results showed no differences in vaccination rates between study groups. However, significantly lower HbA1c and IDAA1c levels in BCG-vaccinated patients were observed, indicating better glycemic control. Immune cell analysis revealed higher PD-L1, CD11b, and CD11c expression in monocytes of BCG-vaccinated T1DM patients, with significant negative correlations between HbA1c levels and PD-L1 and CD11b expression levels.

These findings suggest neonatal BCG vaccination is linked to improved glycemic outcomes and increased monocyte activation, highlighting a potential immunomodulatory capacity of BCG vaccination in T1DM management.

Keywords: Type 1 diabetes mellitus, BCG vaccination, immunomodulation, monocytes, glycolysis

Biography

Miss Sumaya Mohayideen is a Biomedical Research Scientist at the Kumasi Center for Collaborative Research in Tropical Medicine, KNUST, with over five years of experience. She holds an MPhil in Immunology and has conducted research on the immunopathology of Mycobacterium tuberculosis and Type 1 diabetes mellitus. Her recent work investigates the "Effects of BCG Vaccination on Immune Cell Phenotypes in Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus Patients" in Ghana. Miss Mohayideen aims to enhance the understanding of immune responses to diseases, contributing to improved treatment outcomes and vaccine development.