Neurotrophic factors and cell therapy in the treatment of glaucomatous optic neuropathy

• Main Authors: S. A. Borzenok, M. K. Khubetsova, N. A. Gavrilova, I. N. Saburina, K. D. Tonaeva
• Format: Article
• Language: Russian
• Published: Publishing house "Ophthalmology" 2016-05-01
• Series: Офтальмохирургия
• Subjects: glaucoma; apoptosis; neurotrophic factors multipotent mesenchymal stromal cells
• Online Access: https://www.ophthalmosurgery.ru/jour/article/view/236

At present it is accepted that glaucoma is a multi-factorial neurodegenerative disease, in which process there occur a death of retinal ganglion cells (RGC), progressive optic neuropathy and a visual field loss.In recent years, a number of large multicenter studies have convincingly shown that the effective reduction of intraocular pressure by medication and surgical methods does not guarantee a long-term stabilization of the glaucomatous process, and therefore a number of patients have a progression of the neurodegenerative process.This fact determines the necessity to search new ways of glaucoma optic neuropathy therapy, one of these can be the neuroprotection based on the methods of cell therapy.It is shown that the apoptosis is the primary mechanism of RGS death in glaucoma as in other neurodegenerative diseases. Currently found a large number of triggers of RGS apoptosis. One of the most important is the factor blocking axoplasmatic transport of neurotrophins.Neurotrophins are a family of structurally and functionally similar polypeptides that plays an important role in the differentiation, survival and regeneration of neurons.Numerous studies have shown that the neurotrophic factors in general, especially brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and nerve growth factor (NGF) significantly improves the RGC survival in experimental models of glaucoma.It is revealed that multipotent mesenchymal stromal cells (MMSC) can release a large number of bioactive factors, including neurotrophins, both in vivo, as well as in experiments in vitro.MMSC of eye limbus phenotypic match the bone marrowderived mesenchymal stromal cells. During MMSC culturing they secrete a wide variety of cytokines, interleukins, growth-factors. Therefore we consider the transplantation of allogenic limbus fragments as a candidate for cell therapy in the treatment of glaucomatous optic neuropathy.