Morimoto Takeshi, Fujikado Takashi, Choi Jun-Sub, Kanda Hiroyuki, Miyoshi Tomomitsu, Fukuda Yutaka, Tano Yasuo
Department of Applied Visual Science, Osaka University Graduate School of Medicine, Yamadaoka, Osaka, Japan.
Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci. 2007 Oct;48(10):4725-32. doi: 10.1167/iovs.06-1404.
To determine whether transcorneal electrical stimulation (TES) has neuroprotective effects on photoreceptors and preserves retinal function in Royal College of Surgeons (RCS) rats.
Three-week-old RCS rats received TES through a contact lens electrode on the left eye weekly for 2 to 6 weeks. The right eyes received sham stimulation on the same days. Electroretinograms (ERGs) were recorded from the rats at 3 weeks (before TES), and at 5, 7, and 9 weeks of age. After the ERG recordings, the rats were killed for morphologic analyses of the retina.
Morphologic analyses showed that the mean thickness of the outer nuclear layer (ONL) at each time point was significantly thicker in eyes treated with TES of 100 muA than in eyes with sham stimulation (TES 100 muA versus sham: 5, 7, and 9 weeks of age; P < 0.001). ERG studies showed that TES also significantly preserved retinal function up to 7 weeks of age, but did not preserve retinal function at 9 weeks of age.
TES prolongs the survival of photoreceptors and delays the decrease of retinal function in RCS rats. Although further investigations are necessary before using TES on patients, these findings indicate that TES may be a therapeutic treatment for some patients with diseases of the photoreceptors such as retinitis pigmentosa.
确定经角膜电刺激（TES）对皇家外科学院（RCS）大鼠的光感受器是否具有神经保护作用并保留视网膜功能。
3周龄的RCS大鼠每周通过隐形眼镜电极对左眼进行TES刺激，持续2至6周。右眼在同一天接受假刺激。在3周龄（TES刺激前）、5周龄、7周龄和9周龄时记录大鼠的视网膜电图（ERG）。ERG记录后，处死大鼠进行视网膜形态学分析。
形态学分析表明，100μA的TES治疗组在每个时间点的外核层（ONL）平均厚度均显著厚于假刺激组（100μA的TES组与假刺激组相比：5周龄、7周龄和9周龄；P<0.001）。ERG研究表明，TES在7周龄前也显著保留了视网膜功能，但在9周龄时未保留视网膜功能。
TES可延长RCS大鼠光感受器的存活时间并延缓视网膜功能的下降。尽管在对患者使用TES之前还需要进一步研究，但这些发现表明TES可能是治疗某些光感受器疾病患者（如色素性视网膜炎）的一种治疗方法。
