Interferon-gamma inhibits collagen synthesis by human Tenon's capsule fibroblasts in vitro.

Collagen deposition is largely responsible for scar information, an undesirable outcome of glaucoma filtering surgery. Because interferon-gamma (IFN-gamma) has been reported to inhibit collagen synthesis in a variety of cells, the authors examined its effect on collagen synthesis by Tenon's capsule fibroblasts cultured from three patients. In addition, the authors studied the effects of IFN-gamma on fibroblast proliferation. IFN-gamma inhibited collagen synthesis at dosages of 1-10,000 U/ml. The average median effective dose (ED50) was 6.60 U/ml. In contrast, IFN-gamma had no significant effect on cell proliferation in dosages of 0.001-10,000 U/ml. These results suggest that IFN-gamma may be a useful agent for modifying the wound healing response, particularly after glaucoma filtering surgery.