Tables 2 and
3 display a list of all proteins analyzed with their respective Mann-Whitney
U test
P values comparing the mean concentrations between various subgroups. Several proteins levels were noted to be significantly elevated when comparing the non-DM group with the DM group (growth factors: G-CSF, PlGF, VEGF-D; inflammatory proteins: sCD40L, IL-6; Endoglin), the DM with the PDR group (growth factors: PlGF, VEGF-A; inflammatory proteins: IL-8; other biomarkers: leptin), and the PDR with the NVG group (growth factors: EGF, G-CSF, HB-EGF, PlGF; inflammatory proteins: IL-6, IL-8, sCD40L, TNF-α; other biomarkers: Leptin); though some showed an inverse relationship between protein level and ischemia severity. Comparison of the PDR group with the controls showed significant elevations of (1) growth factors: Angiopontin-2, EGF, Endoglin, GCSF, HB-EGF, HGF, PDGF, PlGF, sHER2/neu, sVEGF-R1, VEGF-A, and VEGF-D, (2) inflammatory proteins: IL-6, IL-8, IL-18, PECAM-1, SCF, sFASL, sIL-6Ra, and TNF-α, and (3) other biomarkers: leptin, osteopontin, PAI-1, and uPA. Comparison of the NVG group with the non-DM showed significant differences in levels of (1) growth factors: Angiopontin-2, EGF, Endoglin, GCSF, HB-EGF, HGF, IGFBP, PlGF, TIE-2, sVEGF-R1, VEGF-A, VEGF-C, and VEGF-D; (2) inflammatory proteins: IL-6, IL-8, IL-18, sCD40L, sFASL, and TNF-α; and (3) other biomarkers: leptin, osteopontin, PAI-1. Comparison of the NVG with the DM samples revealed significant differences in levels of (1) growth factors: Angiopontin-2, HGF, PlGF, VEGF-A; (2) inflammatory proteins: IL-8, IL-18, and TNF-α; and (3) other biomarkers: PAI-1. Samples with pretreatment with bevacizumab were compared against untreated samples within the same cohort using Mann-Whitney
U tests. There were four samples in the PDR group that were pretreated with intravitreal bevacizumab within 35 days prior to vitrectomy (mean 7.5 days prior, range, 5–14). There was one sample in the NVG with pretreatment with intravitreal bevacizumab 4 days prior to vitrectomy. There was no significant difference between those receiving pretreatment and those without within both the PDR and NVG cohorts.