Abstract
Purpose :
The rapid increase in myopia in recent decades strongly suggests the involvement of environmental factors in the development of myopia. One of the changes in environmental factors in the modern era is the change in eating habits. Changes in the gut microbiome due to changes in eating habits are involved in many diseases that are becoming more prevalent in the modern era, and probiotics are known to be effective against them. Therefore, we hypothesized that probiotics, especially Lactobacillus, may have an inhibitory effect on myopia progression.
Methods :
Two Lacticaseibacillus paracasei subsp. paracasei strains, JCM1133 and JCM8132 were obtained from RIKEN BRC, Ibaraki, JAPAN. Male C57BL6J (3-week-old, n = 17) mice were divided into three groups: heat-killed JCM1133-administrated group (n = 6), heat-killed JCM8132-administrated group (n = 6) and vehicle-administrated group (n = 5). Lactobacillus was administered by gastric intubation from 3 to 7 weeks of age (1 mg/kg BW). From 4 weeks of age, mice were subjected to wear -30 diopter (D) lens on the right eye and frame without lens on the left eye, respectively. Before and 3 weeks after wearing, the refraction and the axial length were measured using a refractometer and an SD-OCT system in both eyes.
Results :
In the vehicle-administrated group, minus lens-worn eyes showed a refractive error shift (means ± standard deviation, frame eyes: +7.90±4.35 D, -30 D eyes: -11.09±6.45 D, p<0.001) and an axial length elongation (difference of axial length, frame eyes: 0.160±0.011 mm, -30 D eyes: 0.192±0.009 mm, p<0.01). The JCM8132-administrated group also showed the myopic phenotype in minus lens-worn eyes. On the other hand, in the JCM1133-administrated group, there were no significant differences in refractive error (frame eyes: +1.06±7.39 D, -30D eyes: -1.95±5.78 D) and axial length elongation (frame eyes: 0.163±0.014 mm, -30 D eyes: 0.168±0.016 mm).
Conclusions :
Oral administration of certain strains of Lactobacillus are suggested to be effective in preventing myopia progression.
This abstract was presented at the 2024 ARVO Annual Meeting, held in Seattle, WA, May 5-9, 2024.