Abstract
Purpose:
Gelatinous drop-like corneal degeneration (GDLD) is a refractory disease that generates sub-epithelial deposition of amyloid. GDLD shows resistance to treatment with corneal transplantation and it is relapsed in a few years after surgery, but contact lens (CL) wearing has been reported to be effective for recurrent suppressed. We therefore evaluated for adhesion to CL of lactoferrin that is the main component of amyloid, to investigate the mechanism of recurrent suppressed with CL wearing.
Methods:
Various soft contact lenses (SCL) were immersed into human lactoferrin solution (0.1mg / mL), and the adhesion of lactoferrin on SCL was quantified by ELISA after shaking at room temperature for 8 hours. Also, SCL obtained from GDLD patient was observed the adhesion of proteins by immunostaining using anti-lysozyme antibody and an anti-lactoferrin antibody. Also, tear fluid during SCL wearing and non-wearing condition were collected by capillary and each proteins quantified by ELISA.
Results:
The adhesion amount of lactoferrin in each SCL was a small amount, but the SCL treated with lysozyme increased the adhesion amount. Also, the adhesion proteins in obtained SCL from GDLD patient were observed on whole surface of SCL, and many of adhesion of lactoferrin was observed in the surface of adhesion layer of lysozyme adhesion on the SCL surface. Furthermore, lysozyme and lactoferrin in tear fluid during SCL wearing condition showed low quantity compared with non-wearing condition.
Conclusions:
SCL wearing after corneal transplant surgery in GDLD patients is supplemented the corneal epithelial barrier function and suppressed the loss of epithelium. Additionally, trapping a lactoferrin by SCL wearing is useful for suppressing the amyloid deposition and the recurrent.