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GCSE Biology · key term
A condition caused by the immune system mistakenly attacking the body's own cells.
Used by Edexcel and OCR
Specification 7.15 · Paper 2
Revise: Type 1 DiabetesType 1 diabetes is an autoimmune condition. The immune system normally protects the body against pathogens, but in type 1 diabetes it mistakenly attacks the insulin-producing beta cells in the pancreas. Their destruction may take place over several years.
Paper 1 (Foundation), Paper 2 (Foundation), Paper 3 (Higher), Paper 4 (Higher)
A condition in which the immune system mistakenly attacks the body's own cells or tissues.
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In type 1 diabetes, the pancreas stops making enough insulin, often making none. This usually happens because the immune system mistakenly attacks the pancreatic cells that produce insulin. It is therefore an autoimmune condition, not a result of eating too much sugar.