Wirtz Mary K, Keller Kate E
Casey Eye Institute, Oregon Health & Science University, 3181 S.W. Sam Jackson Park Road, Portland, OR 97239, USA.
Mediators Inflamm. 2016;2016:4083735. doi: 10.1155/2016/4083735. Epub 2016 Jan 20.
Glaucoma is a common disease that leads to loss of peripheral vision and, if left untreated, ultimately to blindness. While the exact cause(s) of glaucoma is still unknown, two leading risk factors are age and elevated intraocular pressure. Several studies suggest a possible link between glaucoma and inflammation in humans and animal models. In particular, our lab recently identified a T104M mutation in IL-20 receptor-B (IL-20RB) in primary open angle glaucoma patients from a large pedigree. Several of the interleukin- (IL-) 20 family of cytokines and receptors are expressed in ocular tissues including the trabecular meshwork, optic nerve head, and retinal ganglion cells. The DBA/2J mouse develops high intraocular pressures with age and has characteristic optic nerve defects that make it a useful glaucoma model. IL-24 expression is significantly upregulated in the retina of these mice, while IL-20RA expression in the optic nerve is downregulated following pressure-induced damage. The identification of a mutation in the IL-20RB gene in a glaucoma pedigree and changes in expression levels of IL-20 family members in the DBA/2J mouse suggest that disruption of normal IL-20 signaling in the eye may contribute to degenerative processes associated with glaucoma.
青光眼是一种常见疾病，可导致周边视力丧失，若不治疗最终会导致失明。虽然青光眼的确切病因仍不明确，但两个主要风险因素是年龄和眼压升高。多项研究表明，在人类和动物模型中，青光眼与炎症之间可能存在联系。特别是，我们实验室最近在一个大家族的原发性开角型青光眼患者中发现白细胞介素-20受体B（IL-20RB）存在T104M突变。白细胞介素（IL）-20细胞因子和受体家族中的几种在眼部组织中表达，包括小梁网、视神经乳头和视网膜神经节细胞。DBA/2J小鼠随着年龄增长会出现高眼压，并具有特征性的视神经缺陷，这使其成为一种有用的青光眼模型。这些小鼠视网膜中的IL-24表达显著上调，而压力诱导损伤后，视神经中的IL-20RA表达下调。在一个青光眼家族中IL-20RB基因突变的发现以及DBA/2J小鼠中IL-20家族成员表达水平的变化表明，眼睛中正常IL-20信号的破坏可能导致与青光眼相关的退行性病变。
