| Budget Amount *help |
¥4,680,000 (Direct Cost: ¥3,600,000、Indirect Cost: ¥1,080,000)
Fiscal Year 2010: ¥1,300,000 (Direct Cost: ¥1,000,000、Indirect Cost: ¥300,000)
Fiscal Year 2009: ¥1,560,000 (Direct Cost: ¥1,200,000、Indirect Cost: ¥360,000)
Fiscal Year 2008: ¥1,820,000 (Direct Cost: ¥1,400,000、Indirect Cost: ¥420,000)
|
|---|
| Research Abstract |
It has been suggested that an impairment of retinal circulation contributes to the onset and progression of glaucoma. This study demonstrates that retinal blood vessels are damaged structurally and functionally in rat models of retinal degeneration induced by the retinal ischemia-reperfusion and by an intravitreal injection of NMDA. In these models, changes in retinal layer are limited in the inner retina as demonstrated by loss of retinal ganglion cells and thinning of inner plexiform layer. Therefore, it is likely that neuronal cells presented in the inner retina play a role in maintaining the vascular structure through production/release of growth factors and trophic factors for vascular cells. For example, in this study, we found that retinal ganglion cells express vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) in rat retina. The loss of retinal ganglion cells that are one of sources of VEGF in the retina may fail to provide sufficient amounts of VEGF for maintaining the vascular structure and function. Thus, neuronal cell damage may be an additional cause of progression of the retinal damage by reducing blood supply to retinal neurons. The protection of retinal vascular structure and function would be a novel strategy for preventing progression of glaucoma.
|
