Interleukin-6 Trans-signaling: A Pathway With Therapeutic Potential for Diabetic Retinopathy
Year: 2021
Type: article
Abstract: NEW THERAPIES FOR DIABETIC RETINOPATHY ARE AN URGENT UNMET NEEDDiabetic retinopathy (DR), a sight-threatening neurovasculopathy, is the leading cause of blindness in working-aged adults (Zhang et al., 2010;Hendrick et al., 2015).DR is characterized by pathologic vascular proliferation, oxidative damage, and inflammation within the retina (Tang and Kern, 2011;Antonetti et al., 2012;Klaassen et al., 2013).The progression of DR is highly correlated to the duration of diabetes (Fong et al., 2004).While restoring glycemic control and regulating other systemic factors are important for slowing DR development, limited therapeutic options are available once symptoms progress, and these are primarily aimed at treating late-stage disease (Fullerton et al., 2014;Do et al., 2015;Lee et al., 2015;Gardner and Sundstrom, 2017).The number of DR patients is expected to increase over the coming decades.Currently, the only recommended treatments for advanced retinopathy are laser photocoagulation or anti-VEGF injections, but a substantial proportion of patients are resistant to these treatments.Laser photocoagulation can control pathological neovascularization, but it may lead to complications, such as impaired central vision, nocturnal diminution of vision, and blindness.The beneficial effects of anti-VEGF injections are usually transient, as the treatment does not promote tissue repair, and repeated injections increase the risk of intraocular infection.Furthermore, despite receiving anti-VEGF injections, a small proportion of patients with macular edema still show persistent disease (Lavine et al., 2017;Roy et al., 2017).Moreover, neither treatment targets early-stage disease.Another study examined the effect of candesartan, an angiotensin-II receptor antagonist, on patients with type 1 diabetes and found a moderate 18% reduction in incidence of retinopathy with no effect on the progression of existing retinopathy (Group and Chaturvedi, 2002).Therefore, new therapies to prevent retinal injury and enhance repair represent a critical unmet need.
Source: Frontiers in Physiology
Author: Shruti Sharma
Institution: Augusta University
Language: English
Subfield: Ophthalmology
Field: Medicine
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $2,950
OpenAlex ID: W3161575707