Abstract
Abstract: :
Purpose: We attempted to correlate in-vivo fluorescein angiographic findings of patients with active posterior uveitis with the in-vitro behavior of monocytes and retinal pigment epithelial (RPE) cells when exposed to fluorescein dye. Methods: RPE cells and monocytes were cultured on sterilized cover slips, washed thoroughly, and fluorescein dye in the appropriate media (1% BW iscoves for monocytes, 1% FBS DMEM F12 for RPE cells) was added to each well at a concetration of 30 µg/ml. Cells were incubated for 30 seconds, 2 minutes, 5 minutes, and 10 minutes. The wells were washed with media to remove dead cells and cellular debris, and fixed with formalin 3.7% in PBS. The cover-slips were removed and observed under a fluorescence scope. Results were compared with fluorescein angiograms of patients with active posterior uveitis Results: At all time points, RPE cells demonstrated no intracellular uptake of fluorescein. Monocytes, however, showed significant uptake beginning at 2 minutes of incubation and persisting for up to 10 minutes. This observation correlated with clinical in-vivo findings of the appearance of small punctate areas of hyperfluorescence on the FA of patients with active posterior uveitis which persist through the mid and late phases of the study without evidence of leakage. Conclusion: Fluorescein angiography findings in patients with active uveitis correlated with the behavior of monocytes when exposed in-vitro to fluorescein dye, suggesting that monocytes play an important role during active inflammation in these patients.
Keywords: 432 imaging methods (CT, FA, ICG, MRI, OCT, RTA, SLO, ultrasound) • 570 retinochoroiditis • 554 retina