Aberrant lipid accumulation and retinal pigmental epithelium dysfunction in PRCD-deficient mice

Abstract

AbstractProgressive Rod-Cone Degeneration (PRCD) is an integral membrane protein found in photoreceptor outer segment (OS) disc membranes and its function remains unknown. Mutations inPrcdare implicated inRetinitis pigmentosa(RP) in humans and multiple dog breeds. PRCD-deficient models exhibit decreased levels of cholesterol in the plasma. However, potential changes in the retinal cholesterol remain unexplored. In addition, impaired phagocytosis observed in these animal models points to potential deficits in the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE). Here, using aPrcd-/-murine model we investigated the alterations in the retinal cholesterol levels and impairments in the structural and functional integrity of the RPE. Lipidomic and immunohistochemical analyses show a 5-fold increase in the levels of cholesteryl esters (C.Es) and accumulation of neutral lipids in the PRCD-deficient retina, respectively, indicating alterations in total retinal cholesterol. Longitudinal fundus and spectral domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT) examinations showed focal lesions and RPE hyperreflectivity. Strikingly, the RPE ofPrcd-/-mice exhibited age-related pathological features such as neutral lipid deposits, lipofuscin accumulation, Bruch’s membrane (BrM) thickening and drusenoid focal deposits, mirroring an Age-related Macular Degeneration (AMD)-like phenotype. We propose that the extensive lipofuscin accumulation likely impairs lysosomal function, leading to the defective phagocytosis observed inPrcd-/-mice. Our findings support the dysregulation of retinal cholesterol homeostasis in the absence of PRCD. Further, we demonstrate that progressive photoreceptor degeneration inPrcd-/-mice is accompanied by progressive structural and functional deficits in the RPE, which likely exacerbates vision loss over time.