Abstract
Abstract: :
Purpose: To investigate metabolic changes in rabbit lenses exposed to either UV–A or UV–B radiation, using High–Resolution Magic Angle Spinning (HR–MAS) 1H NMR spectroscopy in combination with principal component analysis (PCA). Methods:Both eyes of adult albino rabbits were irradiated with UV–A (366 nm, 0.589 J/cm2, n = 4) or UV–B (312 nm, 1.667 J/cm2, n = 4) radiation for 8 minutes, once a day for 5 days. Three days after the last irradiation, the animals were sacrificed and the lenses were excised. The intact lenses from both exposed and control rabbits (n= 3) were then analysed using HR–MAS 1H NMR spectroscopy on a Bruker Avance DRX600 spectrometer (14.1 T). The metabolic profile of the samples was analysed by PCA. Results: In the metabolic profile of both exposed (UV–A and UV–B) and unexposed lenses, more than 20 metabolites were assigned in each sample. Glutathione, myo–inositol, choline, alanine, lactate and different amino acids were the most abundant lens metabolites. Compared to unexposed samples, the applied UV radiation doses (both UV–A and UV–B) caused no clear patterns or metabolic changes in the rabbit lenses. Conclusions: HR–MAS 1H NMR spectroscopy in combination with PCA was efficient for analysis of the metabolic profile in intact lens tissues. No detectable metabolic changes were revealed with the applied UV doses. This indicates a great ability of the corneal tissues to protect the eye from UV radiation.
Keywords: metabolism • cataract