Abstract
Purpose :
The neurodegenerative disorder glaucoma shows a multifactorial pathogenesis. Next to the main risk factor, the increased intraocular pressure, e.g. oxidative stress, a stiffened trabecular meshwork and altered mechanics of the lamina cribrosa interplay in this complex network. Several studies yielded an additional contribution of the immune system with autoimmune component. Thus, the aim of the present study was to investigate the pattern of immune cells in aqueous humour (AE) of patients with glaucoma compared to controls.
Methods :
Forty-eight eyes of 48 subjects were recruited at the Department of Ophthalmology, University of Erlangen-Nürnberg: 36 eyes of 36 patients with glaucoma (18 female, 18 male, mean age 71±10 years) and 12 eyes of 12 controls (8 female, 4 male, mean age 75±12 years). AE of glaucoma patients was collected during routine MIGS surgery; control AE was collected during routine cataract surgery. Separation of immune cells was done by fluorescence-activated cell sorting (FACS) for lymphocytes, CD3+ T-lymphocytes, CD19+ B-lymphocytes, CD16+ natural killer cells (NK), polymorphonuclear neutrophils (PMN), and CD14+ monocytes. The study has been approved by the local ethics committee and performed in accordance to the tenets of the Declaration of Helsinki.
Results :
FACS analysis showed a cell composition of 27.1±18% and 13.4±9% (CD3+), 6.1±5% and 3.6±4% (CD19+), 14.8±9% and 40.5%±26% (CD16+), 33.6%±15% and 25.5%±14% (PMN), and 18.3%±14% and 16.6%±15% (monocytes) in glaucoma and cataract eyes-derived AE, respectively. We observed a significant increase of CD3+ T-cell and a significant decrease of CD16+ NK-cells in glaucoma eyes, when compared to controls (p=0.00212 and p=0.0076, respectively; student’s t-test). Interestingly, a subgroup of patients with glaucoma (23%) showed numbers of CD19+ > 8/measured aliquot and numbers of PMN>30/measured aliquot (29%) compared to cataracts (0%; 8%, respectively); yet these findings were not statistically significant (p>0.05).
Conclusions :
The present data confirms the hypothesis of an involvement of the adaptative immune system in the pathogenesis of glaucoma. Surprizingly, the innate NK-cells were increased in AE of patients with cataract.
This abstract was presented at the 2024 ARVO Annual Meeting, held in Seattle, WA, May 5-9, 2024.