Abstract
Purpose: :
Pterygium is a common ocular surface disease featured by the growth of fibrovascular tissue and is often associated with ocular inflammation. Chronic UV exposure is an important environmental factor contributing to the development of pterygium. S100 proteins are involved in cell proliferation and inflammatory responses. Previously we have reported the elevated S100A8 and A9 proteins in tears of pterygium patients, which were later confirmed in pterygial tissues. This study is designed to investigate the effect of UV irradiation on conjunctival epithelial cell S100 gene expression.
Methods: :
IOBA-NHC cells are irradiated with 100mJ/cm2 of UVB light and incubated at 37 degree Celsius overnight. Quantitative PCR was used to measure the transcripts of various S100 genes in IOBA cells before and after UV irradiation.
Results: :
IOBA cells express multiple S100 genes at various levels. Among those, the expression of S100A6, 10, 11 are more abundant than others. UV irradiation caused 1000, 15 and 7 fold increase of S100A8, A9 and A2 transcripts respectively, while the expression of others did not change significantly.
Conclusions: :
UV irradiation of IOBA-NHC cells stimulated the expression of S100A8, A9 and A2 which may contribute to the elevated levels measured in pterygium patient tears. Elevated production of these proteins from conjunctival epithelial cell may contribute to the inflammatory condition observed in pterygium patient.