Affiliation:
1. Immunoregulation Unit, Laboratory of Applied Toxinology (CeTICs/FAPESP), Butantan Institute, São Paulo 05503900, Brazil
Abstract
Visual impairment and blindness are a growing public health problem as they reduce the life quality of millions of people. The management and treatment of these diseases represent scientific and therapeutic challenges because different cellular and molecular actors involved in the pathophysiology are still being identified. Visual system components, particularly retinal cells, are extremely sensitive to genetic or metabolic alterations, and immune responses activated by local insults contribute to biological events, culminating in vision loss and irreversible blindness. Several ocular diseases are linked to retinal cell loss, and some of them, such as retinitis pigmentosa, age-related macular degeneration, glaucoma, and diabetic retinopathy, are characterized by pathophysiological hallmarks that represent possibilities to study and develop novel treatments for retinal cell degeneration. Here, we present a compilation of revisited information on retinal degeneration, including pathophysiological and molecular features and biochemical hallmarks, and possible research directions for novel treatments to assist as a guide for innovative research. The knowledge expansion upon the mechanistic bases of the pathobiology of eye diseases, including information on complex interactions of genetic predisposition, chronic inflammation, and environmental and aging-related factors, will prompt the identification of new therapeutic strategies.
Funder
São Paulo Research Foundation—FAPESP
Subject
Inorganic Chemistry,Organic Chemistry,Physical and Theoretical Chemistry,Computer Science Applications,Spectroscopy,Molecular Biology,General Medicine,Catalysis
Reference158 articles.
1. Biomimetic Models of the Human Eye, and Their Applications;Regal;Nanotechnology,2021
2. Eye Evolution and Its Functional Basis;Nilsson;Vis. Neurosci.,2013
3. (2019). World Report on Vision, World Health Organization.
4. Anatomy and Physiology of the Human Eye: Effects of Mucopolysaccharidoses Disease on Structure and Function—A Review;Willoughby;Clin. Exp. Ophthalmol.,2010
5. The Eye in Extreme Environments;Tipton;Exp. Physiol.,2020