[Cataract--clinic and pathology].

Clinicopathological studies were performed on 156 lenses of human senile cataract obtained by cataract operations between 1970 and 1988. It became clear that the aging influences the functional destruction of the equatorial region, the pathological changes of the bow area, and changes of the extralens environment. After operation for the atrophic type of the posterior subcapsular cataract, aftercataract easily develops on the intraocular lens and this requires treatment. Long-term observations were carried out in 180 Wistar male rats under the same laboratory condition and histological studies were performed. The similarities between the senile Wistar rat cataract and the human senile cataract indicate that the Wistar rat cataract is useful as a model for studying the human senile cataract. These rats were initially classified into six groups (control, vitamin E diet, EPC eye drops, catalin eye drops and reduced catalin eye drops). To study the effects of the agents (vitamin E, ARI, EPC, catalin, reduced catalin) on the cataract in senile Wistar rats the mean cell density of lens epithelia were measured at 2 or 3-month intervals. There were no statistically significant differences in treated groups and the control group. The results suggest that these agents affect another factor of lens apart from the proliferative activity of lens epithelial cell. Effects of anti-cataract agents were investigated using cultured lens epithelial cells. When cultured rat lens epithelial cells were incubated in medium containing selenite, super-oxide dismutase (SOD) activity and GSH in the cells markedly decreased, and GSSG was markedly increased. When cultured rabbit lens epithelial cells were incubated in medium contained selenite and glutathione, SOD activity was maintained normal level. When cultured lens epithelial cells were incubated in medium contained selenite and pirenoxin, SOD activity also maintained a normal level. These results suggest that both glutathione and pirenoxin are effective as anti-cataract agents. Cataracts in spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR) was investigated on male of Wistar-Kyoto rats (WKY), stroke resistant SHR (SHRSR) and stroke-prone SHR (SHRSP) rats aged 3 to 9 months. Cataracts in these rats were classified as follows: Type 0: no opaciiy, Type 1: nuclear opacity, Type 2: posterior subcapsular opacity, Type 3: nuclear opacity associated posterior subcapsular opacity and Type 4: complete opacity in both lenses. Incidence of cataract in WKY was 2.6%, SHRSR, 76.8% ant SHRSP, 88.2%. Incidence of nuclear opacity was remarkably higher in SHRSP (48.5%). In SHR aged from 3 to 5 months, nuclear opacity was ahead of the appearance of posterior subcapsular opacity which was increased during aging.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)