Abstract
Purpose :
To identify the specific expression patterns of systemic factors and vitreous fluid (VF) cytokines in patients with proliferative diabetic retinopathy (PDR).
Methods :
The study group (males / females: 18 / 7, mean age ± standard deviation [SD]: 58.6 ± 13.5 years old) was composed of 26 PDR eyes in 25 patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus, who underwent pars plana vitrectomy (PPV) for vitreous hemorrhage and/or tractional retinal detachment. The control group (males / females: 13 / 18, mean age ± SD: 71.2 ± 8.34 years old) consisted of 14 eyes patients with idiopathic macular hole and 17 eyes patients with idiopathic epiretinal membrane. As systemic factors, age, body mass index (BMI), systolic blood pressure (SBP), diastolic blood pressure (DBP), pulse pressure difference between SBP and DBP (PPD), heart rate (HR), international normalized ratio of prothrombin time (PT-INR), activated partial thromboplastin time (APTT), fasting blood glucose (FBG), hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c), and estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) were measured. Undiluted VF was obtained at the beginning of PPV. IL-1ra, IL-6, IL-7, IL-8, IL-13, eotaxin, IFN-γ, IP-10, MCP-1, MIP-1β, TNFα and VEGF-A were measured by a multiplex bead array. Hierarchical cluster analysis was used to examine a comprehensive functional evaluation of systemic factors and VF cytokines as biomarkers in the pathology of PDR.
Results :
In control group, the explanatory variables were broadly classified into one cytokine and two principal clusters: 1; IP-10, 2; a cluster composed of age, SBP, DBP, PPD, HR, FBG, eGFR and MCP-1, and 3; another cluster consisting of BMI, PT-INR, APTT, HbA1c and the remaining cytokines including VEGF-A. Age, SBP, DBP, PPD, HR, FBG, eGFR were grouped into a subcluster, and MCP-1 was proximately located to the subcluster. In PDR group, the explanatory variables were roughly divided into one cytokine and two principal clusters: 1; IP-10, 2; a cluster composed of MCP-1 and VEGF-A, and 3; another cluster consisting of all systemic factors and the remaining cytokines. VEGF-A was proximately located to MCP-1, not resembling to the arrangement in control group.
Conclusions :
In PDR, the association between systemic factors and intraocular factors of inflammation and angiogenesis would be vulnerable, suggesting that the intraocular factors independently affect the pathology of PDR.
This abstract was presented at the 2022 ARVO Annual Meeting, held in Denver, CO, May 1-4, 2022, and virtually.