Abstract
Purpose::
Sjogren's syndrome (SS) is a chronic autoimmune disorder in which immune cells attack and destroy the glands that produce tears and saliva. The hallmark symptoms of the disorder are dry mouth and dry eyes. We have demonstrated that topically applied D-ß-Hydroxybutyrate (HBA) ameliorates corneal epithelial disorder in a rat non-SS type dry eye model. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of HBA on SS type of dry eye, using the autoimmune MRL/lpr mouse model.
Methods::
A series of treatments were performed under continuous exposure to low-humidity airflow (25 ± 5%, 2-4 m/s). Female 12-week-old MRL/lpr mouse showed corneal fluorescein staining were used in this study. Eyes were randomly selected for 0.1, 0.4, 1.6% HBA eye drops or PBS as a control (n=28-30 each). Three microlitters of eye drops were then given every 2 hours for 8 hours. After the onset of 28 days application, corneal surface alteration was evaluated according to fluorescein stained area (score, 0-4).
Results::
On the PBS group, no changes were observed compared to initial value (2.36 ± 0.06 to 2.42 ± 0.06). For the HBA treatment groups decrease in fluorescein staining score was observed (0.1%; 1.96 ± 0.16, 0.4%; 1.90 ± 0.15, 1.6%; 1.66 ± 0.12). Significant decrease in fluorescein staining score were observed in 1.6% HBA application, compared with the PBS (p<0.01).
Conclusions::
This study suggests the potential usefulness of HBA in the clinical treatment of ocular surface epithelial disorders in patients with SS.
Keywords: cornea: tears/tear film/dry eye • cornea: basic science • lacrimal gland