People with a condition known as dry eye disease are more likely than those with healthy eyes to suffer injuries to their corneas. Studying mice, researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have found that proteins made by stem cells that regenerate the cornea may be new tar
The study will be published online today in the journalDry eye disease occurs when the eye can’t provide adequate lubrication with natural tears. People with the common disorder use various types of drops to replace missing natural tears and keep the eyes lubricated, but when eyes are dry, the cornea is more susceptible to injury.
“We have drugs, but they only work well in about 10% to 15% of patients,” said senior investigator Rajendra S. Apte, MD, PhD, the Paul A. Cibis Distinguished Professor in the John F. Hardesty, MD, Department of Ophthalmology & Visual Sciences. “In this study involving genes that are key to eye health, we identified potential targets for treatment that appear different in dry eyes than in healthy eyes.
The researchers analyzed genes expressed by the cornea in several mouse models — not only for dry eye disease, but also for diabetes and other conditions.
“These stem cells are important and resilient and a key reason corneal transplantation works so well,” Apte explained. “If the proteins we’ve identified don’t pan out as therapies to activate these cells in people with dry eye syndrome, we may even be able to transplant engineered limbal stem cells to prevent corneal injury in patients with dry eyes.”
Reference: “Dry eye disease in mice activates adaptive corneal epithelial regeneration distinct from constitutive renewal in homeostasis” by Lin JB, Shen X, Pfeifer CW, Shiau F, Santeford A, Ruzycki PA, Clark BS, Liu Q, Huang AJW, Apte RS, 2 January 2023,The study was funded with support from the National Eye Institute, the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, and the National Institute of General Medical Sciences of the National Institutes of Health .
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