Autoimmune diseases, such as type 1 diabetes, are complex genetic traits which result from defects in the immune system.
[1] Genetics (based on Greek γενεά geneá "descent" and γένεσις génesis "origin")[2] is the science researching the transfer of characteristics from one generation to the next.
Its origin is usually attributed to Edward Jenner, who discovered in 1796 that cowpox, or vaccinia, induced protection against human smallpox.
The first Nobel Prize in the field of immunogenetics was awarded to Baruj Benacerraf, Jean Dausset and George Davis Snell in 1980 for discovering genetically determined cellular surface structures, which control immunological reactions.
Both the acceleration of and the decreasing costs for the sequencing of the genes have resulted in more intensive research of both academic and commercial working groups.