Maisonneuve-Rosemont Hospital Research Center, Montreal, QC H1T 2M4, Canada.
Department of Ophthalmology, Université de Montréal, Montreal, QC H3C 3J7, Canada.
Cells. 2022 Jul 29;11(15):2336. doi: 10.3390/cells11152336.
The TGF-β signaling pathway plays a crucial role in several key aspects of development and tissue homeostasis. TGF-β ligands and their mediators have been shown to be important regulators of ocular physiology and their dysregulation has been described in several eye pathologies. TGF-β signaling participates in regulating several key developmental processes in the eye, including angiogenesis and neurogenesis. Inadequate TGF-β signaling has been associated with defective angiogenesis, vascular barrier function, unfavorable inflammatory responses, and tissue fibrosis. In addition, experimental models of corneal neovascularization, diabetic retinopathy, proliferative vitreoretinopathy, glaucoma, or corneal injury suggest that aberrant TGF-β signaling may contribute to the pathological features of these conditions, showing the potential of modulating TGF-β signaling to treat eye diseases. This review highlights the key roles of TGF-β family members in ocular physiology and in eye diseases, and reviews approaches targeting the TGF-β signaling as potential treatment options.
TGF-β 信号通路在发育和组织稳态的几个关键方面发挥着重要作用。TGF-β 配体及其介质已被证明是眼生理学的重要调节剂，其在几种眼部疾病中的失调已被描述。TGF-β 信号参与调节眼睛中的几个关键发育过程，包括血管生成和神经发生。TGF-β 信号不足与血管生成缺陷、血管屏障功能障碍、不利的炎症反应和组织纤维化有关。此外，角膜新生血管形成、糖尿病视网膜病变、增殖性玻璃体视网膜病变、青光眼或角膜损伤的实验模型表明，异常的 TGF-β 信号可能有助于这些疾病的病理特征，显示出调节 TGF-β 信号以治疗眼部疾病的潜力。本综述强调了 TGF-β 家族成员在眼生理学和眼部疾病中的关键作用，并回顾了靶向 TGF-β 信号作为潜在治疗选择的方法。
