Ningbo Eye Hospital, 855 Min An Road, Ningbo, Zhejiang, 315040, China.
Jacob's Retina Center at Shiley Eye Institute, Department of Ophthalmology, University of California San Diego, 9415 Campus Point Drive, La Jolla, CA, 92037-0946, USA.
Sci Rep. 2019 Mar 5;9(1):3517. doi: 10.1038/s41598-019-39652-x.
Currently, myopic retinopathy is the most common irreversible blinding disease but its pathophysiology is not completely clear. A cross-sectional, observational study was conducted in a single center to analyze aqueous samples from highly myopic eyes (axial length >25 mm, n = 92) and ametropic or mild myopic eyes (n = 88) for inflammatory cytokines. Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), Interleukin 6 (IL-6), and matrix metalloproteinase-2 (MMP-2) were measured using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. IL-6 and MMP-2 were significantly higher in the highly myopic eyes than in the non-high myopic eyes (IL-6: 11.90 vs. 4.38 pg/mL, p < 0.0001; MMP-2: 13.10 vs. 8.82 ng/mL, p = 0.0003) while adjusting for age, gender, and intraocular pressure. There was a significant positive association between levels of IL-6 and MMP-2 in aqueous humor and the axial lengths of the eye globes (IL-6, β = 0.065, p < 0.0001, n = 134; MMP-2, β = 0.097, p < 0.0001, n = 131). Conversely, VEGF in aqueous humor was significantly lower in the highly myopic eyes than in the non-high myopic eyes (45.56 vs. 96.90 pg/mL, p < 0.0001, n = 153) while age, gender, and intraocular pressure were adjusted. The results suggest that low-grade intraocular inflammation may play an important role in the development and progression of high myopia and myopic retinopathy.
目前，近视性视网膜病变是最常见的不可逆致盲性疾病，但它的发病机制尚不完全清楚。本研究在单中心进行了一项横断面观察性研究，对高度近视眼（眼轴长度＞25mm，n＝92）和屈光不正或轻度近视眼（n＝88）的房水样本进行分析，以检测炎症细胞因子。采用酶联免疫吸附试验检测血管内皮生长因子（VEGF）、白细胞介素 6（IL-6）和基质金属蛋白酶 2（MMP-2）。调整年龄、性别和眼内压后，高度近视眼中的 IL-6 和 MMP-2 明显高于非高度近视眼（IL-6：11.90 vs. 4.38pg/mL，p＜0.0001；MMP-2：13.10 vs. 8.82ng/mL，p＝0.0003）。房水中的 IL-6 和 MMP-2 水平与眼球轴长呈显著正相关（IL-6，β＝0.065，p＜0.0001，n＝134；MMP-2，β＝0.097，p＜0.0001，n＝131）。相反，调整年龄、性别和眼内压后，高度近视眼中房水中的 VEGF 明显低于非高度近视眼（45.56 vs. 96.90pg/mL，p＜0.0001，n＝153）。结果提示，低度眼内炎症可能在近视和近视性视网膜病变的发生和发展中发挥重要作用。
