INS and type 1 diabetes mellitus: Several microRNAs (miRNAs) – short non-coding RNAs (~22 nucleotides) that play important roles in the gene expression regulation (9) – have been reported in association with T1DM, affecting β-cell metabolism (10, 11), insulin secretion (12, 13), T-cell function (14, 15), biosynthesis and performance of autoantigens (16).