Hossain Mofazzal, Liu Yutao
Department of Cellular Biology and Anatomy, Medical College of Georgia, Augusta University, Augusta, Georgia, USA.
Center for Biotechnology and Genomic Medicine, Augusta University, Augusta, Georgia, USA.
Curr Eye Res. 2025 Feb 3:1-10. doi: 10.1080/02713683.2025.2459888.
Glaucoma is one of the leading causes of irreversible blindness, characterized by progressive visual field loss. Several risk factors are associated with developing the disease. However, the exact mechanisms or pathological pathways involved are still unknown. There is an urgent need to find the mechanisms and biomarkers for early detection and therapy to halt progression or cure the disease. Extracellular vesicles (EVs), specifically exosomes, have emerged as a crucial player in all aspects of glaucoma, including pathogenesis to therapeutic application with their cell-cell communication properties.
We performed a literature search on PubMed, Google Scholar, and Web of Science using different keywords. Next, we reviewed the literature with studies focusing on the role of EVs as a causative factor in disease progression, biomarker discovery based on their contents, and protection from glaucoma.
Studies summarized here provide reports of differential EV miRNA and protein expression alterations when communicating with aqueous humor drainage tissues. We described how EV contents are involved in various pathways, including extracellular matrix remodeling and miRNA-mediated oxidative stress transmission between outflow tissues, thereby contributing to glaucoma. Extracellular vesicles, mainly derived from mesenchymal stem cells protecting the optic nerve from degeneration, have also been discussed as potential therapies for glaucoma.
Overall, this review provides a comprehensive discussion of the role of extracellular vesicles in glaucoma. We identified the challenges in finding major signaling molecules of glaucoma etiology. Lastly, we highlighted future directions to improve the treatment of glaucoma by extracellular vesicles.
青光眼是不可逆性失明的主要原因之一，其特征为进行性视野缺损。多种风险因素与该疾病的发生相关。然而，所涉及的确切机制或病理途径仍不清楚。迫切需要找到用于早期检测和治疗以阻止疾病进展或治愈该疾病的机制和生物标志物。细胞外囊泡（EVs），特别是外泌体，凭借其细胞间通讯特性，在青光眼的各个方面，从发病机制到治疗应用，都已成为关键因素。
我们使用不同关键词在PubMed、谷歌学术和科学网进行了文献检索。接下来，我们回顾了相关文献，这些研究聚焦于细胞外囊泡作为疾病进展的致病因素的作用、基于其内容物的生物标志物发现以及对青光眼的保护作用。
此处总结的研究提供了与房水引流组织通讯时细胞外囊泡微小RNA（miRNA）和蛋白质表达差异改变的报告。我们描述了细胞外囊泡内容物如何参与各种途径，包括细胞外基质重塑以及流出组织之间的miRNA介导的氧化应激传递，从而导致青光眼。主要源自间充质干细胞的细胞外囊泡可保护视神经免于退变，也已被讨论作为青光眼的潜在治疗方法。
总体而言，本综述全面讨论了细胞外囊泡在青光眼中的作用。我们确定了在寻找青光眼病因主要信号分子方面的挑战。最后，我们强调了通过细胞外囊泡改善青光眼治疗的未来方向。
