<p>Co-occurrence of bacterial infections with type 2 diabetes (T2D) is a global problem. Melioidosis caused
by <i>Burkholderia pseudomallei</i> is 10 times more likely to occur in patients with T2D, than in normoglycemic individuals. Using an experimental model of T2D, we observed that greater susceptibility in T2D was due to differences in proportions of infiltrating leucocytes and reduced levels of MCP-1, IFN-γ and IL-12 at sites of infection within 24 h post-infection. However, by 72 h the levels of inflammatory cytokines and bacteria were markedly higher in visceral tissue and blood in T2D mice. In T2D, dysregulated early immune responses are responsible for the greater predisposition to <i>B. pseudomallei</i> infection.