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Glaucoma: From Pathophysiology to Novel Therapies

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A special issue of International Journal of Molecular Sciences (ISSN 1422-0067). This special issue belongs to the section "Molecular Pathology, Diagnostics, and Therapeutics".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 June 2022) | Viewed by 16396

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Special Issue Editor

Dr. Gulab S. Zode

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Guest Editor

Department of Pharmacology and Neuroscience, North Texas Eye Research Institute - UNTHSC, Fort Worth, TX, USA
Interests: glaucomatous damage to TM and RGCs; protein misfolding in glaucoma; ER stress; autophagy; mitophagy; gene therapy; genome editing; TGFb2 signaling; glucocorticoid-induced glaucoma

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG) is the leading cause of irreversible blindness affecting over 57 million people worldwide. Progressive loss of retinal ganglion cells (RGCs) and degeneration of optic nerve axons constitute the pathological hallmark of glaucoma. Elevated intraocular pressure (IOP) due to dysfunction of trabecular meshwork (TM) is the most significant and the only known modifiable risk factor for glaucoma. Although glaucomatous TM damage is known to be mainly responsible for IOP elevation, which can lead to optic neuropathy and vision loss, none of the current treatments target TM pathology—this is partly due to the lack of understanding of pathological mechanisms of TM damage. In this Special Issue, we invite original manuscripts and review articles that focus on understanding the pathological mechanisms of glaucomatous TM damage and novel therapies targeting these pathologies.

Dr. Gulab S. Zode
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. International Journal of Molecular Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. There is an Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal. For details about the APC please see here. Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

autophagy
ER stress
protein misfolding
pathological mechanisms of glaucoma
therapies targeting pathophysiology of glaucoma

Published Papers (7 papers)

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Research

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20 pages, 4432 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Modulation of Mitochondrial Metabolic Parameters and Antioxidant Enzymes in Healthy and Glaucomatous Trabecular Meshwork Cells with Hybrid Small Molecule SA-2

by Charles E. Amankwa, Olivia Young, Biddut DebNath, Sudershan R. Gondi, Rajiv Rangan, Dorette Z. Ellis, Gulab Zode, Dorota L. Stankowska and Suchismita Acharya

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2023, 24(14), 11557; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms241411557 - 17 Jul 2023

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1202

Abstract

Oxidative stress (OS)-induced mitochondrial damage is a risk factor for primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG). Mitochondria-targeted novel antioxidant therapies could unearth promising drug candidates for the management of POAG. Previously, our dual-acting hybrid molecule SA-2 with nitric oxide-donating and antioxidant activity reduced intraocular pressure and improved aqueous humor outflow in rodent eyes. Here, we examined the mechanistic role of SA-2 in trabecular meshwork (TM) cells in vitro and measured the activity of intracellular antioxidant enzymes during OS. Primary human TM cells isolated from normal (hNTM) or glaucomatous (hGTM) post-mortem donors and transformed glaucomatous TM cells (GTM-3) were used for in vitro assays. We examined the effect of SA-2 on oxygen consumption rate (OCR) and extracellular acidification rate (ECAR) in vitro using Seahorse Analyzer with or without the oxidant, tert-butyl hydroperoxide (TBHP) treatment. Concentrations of total antioxidant enzymes, catalase (CAT), malondialdehyde (MDA), and glutathione peroxidase (GPx) were measured. We observed significant protection of both hNTM and hGTM cells from TBHP-induced cell death by SA-2. Antioxidant enzymes were elevated in SA-2-treated cells compared to TBHP-treated cells. In addition, SA-2 demonstrated an increase in mitochondrial metabolic parameters. Altogether, SA-2 protected both normal and glaucomatous TM cells from OS via increasing mitochondrial energy parameters and the activity of antioxidant enzymes. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Glaucoma: From Pathophysiology to Novel Therapies)

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20 pages, 8364 KiB

Open AccessArticle

A Novel Mouse Model of TGFβ2-Induced Ocular Hypertension Using Lentiviral Gene Delivery

by Shruti V. Patil, Ramesh B. Kasetti, J. Cameron Millar and Gulab S. Zode

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2022, 23(13), 6883; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms23136883 - 21 Jun 2022

Cited by 10 | Viewed by 2663

Abstract

Glaucoma is a multifactorial disease leading to irreversible blindness. Primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG) is the most common form and is associated with the elevation of intraocular pressure (IOP). Reduced aqueous humor (AH) outflow due to trabecular meshwork (TM) dysfunction is responsible for IOP elevation in POAG. Extracellular matrix (ECM) accumulation, actin cytoskeletal reorganization, and stiffening of the TM are associated with increased outflow resistance. Transforming growth factor (TGF) β2, a profibrotic cytokine, is known to play an important role in the development of ocular hypertension (OHT) in POAG. An appropriate mouse model is critical in understanding the underlying molecular mechanism of TGFβ2-induced OHT. To achieve this, TM can be targeted with recombinant viral vectors to express a gene of interest. Lentiviruses (LV) are known for their tropism towards TM with stable transgene expression and low immunogenicity. We, therefore, developed a novel mouse model of IOP elevation using LV gene transfer of active human TGFβ2 in the TM. We developed an LV vector-encoding active hTGFβ2^C226,228S under the control of a cytomegalovirus (CMV) promoter. Adult C57BL/6J mice were injected intravitreally with LV expressing null or hTGFβ2^C226,228S. We observed a significant increase in IOP 3 weeks post-injection compared to control eyes with an average delta change of 3.3 mmHg. IOP stayed elevated up to 7 weeks post-injection, which correlated with a significant drop in the AH outflow facility (40.36%). Increased expression of active TGFβ2 was observed in both AH and anterior segment samples of injected mice. The morphological assessment of the mouse TM region via hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) staining and direct ophthalmoscopy examination revealed no visible signs of inflammation or other ocular abnormalities in the injected eyes. Furthermore, transduction of primary human TM cells with LV_hTGFβ2^C226,228S exhibited alterations in actin cytoskeleton structures, including the formation of F-actin stress fibers and crossed-linked actin networks (CLANs), which are signature arrangements of actin cytoskeleton observed in the stiffer fibrotic-like TM. Our study demonstrated a mouse model of sustained IOP elevation via lentiviral gene delivery of active hTGFβ2^C226,228S that induces TM dysfunction and outflow resistance. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Glaucoma: From Pathophysiology to Novel Therapies)

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21 pages, 9496 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Relationships between Intraocular Pressure, Effective Filtration Area, and Morphological Changes in the Trabecular Meshwork of Steroid-Induced Ocular Hypertensive Mouse Eyes

by Ruiyi Ren, Anne A. Humphrey, David L. Swain and Haiyan Gong

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2022, 23(2), 854; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms23020854 - 13 Jan 2022

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2242

Abstract

We investigated whether an inverse relationship exists between intraocular pressure (IOP) and effective filtration area (EFA) in the trabecular meshwork (TM) in a steroid-induced ocular hypertensive (SIOH) mouse model and the morphological changes associated with the reduction of EFA. C57BL/6 mice (n = 15 per group) received either 0.1% dexamethasone (DEX) or saline eye drops twice daily for five weeks. IOP was measured weekly. Fluorescent tracers were injected into the anterior chamber to label EFA at the endpoint. Injected eyes were fixed and processed for confocal microscopy. EFA in the TM was analyzed. Light and electron microscopy were performed in high- and low-tracer regions of six eyes per group. The mean IOP was ~4 mm Hg higher in DEX-treated than saline-treated control eyes (p < 0.001) at the endpoint. EFA was reduced in DEX-treated eyes compared to controls (p < 0.01) and negatively correlated with IOP (R² = 0.38, p = 0.002). Reduced thickness of juxtacanalicular tissue (JCT) and increased abnormal extracellular matrix in the JCT were found to be associated with reduced EFA. Our data confirm the inverse relationship between EFA and IOP, suggesting that morphological changes in the JCT contribute to the reduction of EFA, thus elevating IOP in SIOH mouse eyes. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Glaucoma: From Pathophysiology to Novel Therapies)

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16 pages, 3125 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Astragaloside IV Attenuates Ocular Hypertension in a Mouse Model of TGFβ2 Induced Primary Open Angle Glaucoma

by Ramesh B. Kasetti, Prabhavathi Maddineni, Bindu Kodati, Bhavani Nagarajan and Sam Yacoub

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2021, 22(22), 12508; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms222212508 - 19 Nov 2021

Cited by 16 | Viewed by 2272

Abstract

Elevated intraocular pressure (IOP) is a major risk factor in developing primary open angle glaucoma (POAG), which is the most common form of glaucoma. Transforming growth factor-beta 2 (TGFβ2) is a pro-fibrotic cytokine that plays an important role in POAG pathogenesis. TGFβ2 induced extracellular matrix (ECM) production, deposition and endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress in the trabecular meshwork (TM) contribute to increased aqueous humor (AH) outflow resistance and IOP elevation. Drugs which alter the glaucomatous fibrotic changes and ER stress in the TM may be effective in reducing ocular hypertension. Astragaloside IV (AS.IV), a novel saponin isolated from the roots of Astragalus membranaceus, has demonstrated antifibrotic and ER stress lowering effects in various tissues during disease conditions. However, the effect of AS.IV on glaucomatous TM fibrosis, ER stress and ocular hypertension has not been studied. Primary human TM cells treated with AS.IV decreased TGFβ2 induced ECM (FN, Col-I) deposition and ER stress (KDEL, ATF4 and CHOP). Moreover, AS.IV treatment reduced TGFβ2 induced NF-κB activation and αSMA expression in TM cells. We found that AS.IV treatment significantly increased levels of matrix metalloproteases (MMP9 and MMP2) and MMP2 enzymatic activity, indicating that the antifibrotic effects of AS.IV are mediated via inhibition of NF-κB and activation of MMPs. AS.IV treatment also reduced ER stress in TM3 cells stably expressing mutant myocilin. Interestingly, the topical ocular AS.IV eye drops (1 mM) significantly decreased TGFβ2 induced ocular hypertension in mice, and this was associated with a decrease in FN, Col-1 (ECM), KDEL (ER stress) and αSMA in mouse TM tissues. Taken together, the results suggest that AS.IV prevents TGFβ2 induced ocular hypertension by modulating ECM deposition and ER stress in the TM. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Glaucoma: From Pathophysiology to Novel Therapies)

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28 pages, 35263 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Identification of Estrogen Signaling in a Prioritization Study of Intraocular Pressure-Associated Genes

by Hannah A. Youngblood, Emily Parker, Jingwen Cai, Kristin Perkumas, Hongfang Yu, Jason Sun, Sylvia B. Smith, Kathryn E. Bollinger, Janey L. Wiggs, Louis R. Pasquale, Michael A. Hauser, W. Daniel Stamer and Yutao Liu

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2021, 22(19), 10288; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms221910288 - 24 Sep 2021

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2705

Abstract

Elevated intraocular pressure (IOP) is the only modifiable risk factor for primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG). Herein we sought to prioritize a set of previously identified IOP-associated genes using novel and previously published datasets. We identified several genes for future study, including several involved in cytoskeletal/extracellular matrix reorganization, cell adhesion, angiogenesis, and TGF-β signaling. Our differential correlation analysis of IOP-associated genes identified 295 pairs of 201 genes with differential correlation. Pathway analysis identified β-estradiol as the top upstream regulator of these genes with ESR1 mediating 25 interactions. Several genes (i.e., EFEMP1, FOXC1, and SPTBN1) regulated by β-estradiol/ESR1 were highly expressed in non-glaucomatous human trabecular meshwork (TM) or Schlemm’s canal (SC) cells and specifically expressed in TM/SC cell clusters defined by single-cell RNA-sequencing. We confirmed ESR1 gene and protein expression in human TM cells and TM/SC tissue with quantitative real-time PCR and immunofluorescence, respectively. 17β-estradiol was identified in bovine, porcine, and human aqueous humor (AH) using ELISA. In conclusion, we have identified estrogen receptor signaling as a key modulator of several IOP-associated genes. The expression of ESR1 and these IOP-associated genes in TM/SC tissue and the presence of 17β-estradiol in AH supports a role for estrogen signaling in IOP regulation. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Glaucoma: From Pathophysiology to Novel Therapies)

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17 pages, 3856 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Sodium 4-Phenylbutyrate Reduces Ocular Hypertension by Degrading Extracellular Matrix Deposition via Activation of MMP9

by Prabhavathi Maddineni, Ramesh B. Kasetti, Bindu Kodati, Sam Yacoub and Gulab S. Zode

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2021, 22(18), 10095; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms221810095 - 18 Sep 2021

Cited by 15 | Viewed by 2616

Abstract

Ocular hypertension (OHT) is a serious adverse effect of the widely prescribed glucocorticoid (GC) therapy and, if left undiagnosed, it can lead to glaucoma and complete blindness. Previously, we have shown that the small chemical chaperone, sodium-4-phenylbutyrate (PBA), rescues GC-induced OHT by reducing ocular endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress. However, the exact mechanism of how PBA rescues GC-induced OHT is not completely understood. The trabecular meshwork (TM) is a filter-like specialized contractile tissue consisting of TM cells embedded within extracellular matrix (ECM) that controls intraocular pressure (IOP) by constantly regulating aqueous humor (AH) outflow. Induction of abnormal ECM deposition in TM is a hallmark of GC-induced OHT. Here, we investigated whether PBA reduces GC-induced OHT by degrading abnormal ECM deposition in TM using mouse model of GC-induced OHT, ex vivo cultured human TM tissues and primary human TM cells. We show that topical ocular eye drops of PBA (1%) significantly lowers elevated IOP in mouse model of GC-induced OHT. Importantly, PBA prevents synthesis and deposition of GC-induced ECM in TM. We report for the first time that PBA can degrade existing abnormal ECM in normal human TM cells/tissues by inducing matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)9 expression and activity. Furthermore, inhibition of MMPs activity by chemical-inhibitor (minocycline) abrogated PBA’s effect on ECM reduction and its associated ER stress. Our study indicates a non-chaperone activity of PBA via activation of MMP9 that degrades abnormal ECM accumulation in TM. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Glaucoma: From Pathophysiology to Novel Therapies)

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Review

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18 pages, 2619 KiB

Open AccessReview

Homocysteine and Glaucoma

by Joshua Washington, Robert Ritch and Yutao Liu

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2023, 24(13), 10790; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms241310790 - 28 Jun 2023

Viewed by 1770

Abstract

Elevated levels of homocysteine (Hcy), a non-proteinogenic amino acid, may lead to a host of manifestations across the biological systems, particularly the nervous system. Defects in Hcy metabolism have been associated with many neurodegenerative diseases including glaucoma, i.e., the leading cause of blindness. However, the pathophysiology of elevated Hcy and its eligibility as a risk factor for glaucoma remain unclear. We aimed to provide a comprehensive review of the relationship between elevated Hcy levels and glaucoma. Through a systemic search of the PubMed and Google Scholar databases, we found that elevated Hcy might play an important role in the pathogenesis of glaucoma. Further research will be necessary to help clarify the specific contribution of elevated Hcy in the pathogenesis of glaucoma. A discovery and conceptual understanding of Hcy-associated glaucoma could be the keys to providing better therapeutic treatment, if not prophylactic treatment, for this disease. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Glaucoma: From Pathophysiology to Novel Therapies)

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