PURPOSE To evaluate the effects of dry eye on ocular surface protease activity and sight threatening corneal complications following ocular surface chemical injury. METHODS C57BL/6 mice were subjected to unilateral alkali burn (AB) with or without concomitant dry eye for 2 or 5 days. Mice were observed daily for appearance of corneal perforation. Whole corneas were harvested and lysed for RNA...

BACKGROUND, AIM The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) on the acute phase of experimental corrosive esophageal burns. MATERIALS AND METHODS Fifty male rats were allocated into five groups (control, acid burn, alkali burn, acid burn + DMSO and alkali burn + DMSO) of ten rats each. Acid and alkali burns were creating by burning the distal esophagus wit...

Pathological angiogenesis is one of the major symptoms of severe ocular diseases, including corneal neovascularization. The blockade of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) action has been recognized as an efficient strategy for treating corneal neovascularization. In this study, we aimed to investigate whether nanoparticle-based delivery of apatinib, a novel and selective inhibitor of VEG...

OBJECTIVE The deficiency of very low-density lipoprotein receptor resulted in Wnt signaling activation and neovascularization in the retina. The present study sought to determine whether the very low-density lipoprotein receptor extracellular domain (VLN) is responsible for the inhibition of Wnt signaling in ocular tissues. APPROACH AND RESULTS A plasmid expressing the soluble VLN was encapsu...

BACKGROUND Tetramethylpyrazine (TMP) is one of the active ingredients extracted from the Chinese herb Chuanxiong, which has been used to treat cerebrovascular and cardiovascular diseases, pulmonary diseases and cancer. However, the molecular mechanisms underlying the actions of TMP have not been fully elucidated. In a previous study we showed that TMP-mediated glioma suppression and neural prot...

Wound healing involves both local cells and inflammatory cells. Alkali burn of ocular surface tissue is a serious clinical problem often leading to permanent visual impairment resulting from ulceration, scarring and neovascularization during healing. Behaviors of corneal cells and inflammatory cells are orchestrated by growth factor signaling networks that have not been fully uncovered. Here we...

Corneal neovascularization (NV) is the major sight-threatening pathology caused by angiogenic stimuli. Current drugs that directly target pro-angiogenic factors to inhibit or reverse the disease require multiple rounds of administration and have limited efficacies. Here, we identify potential anti-angiogenic corneal microRNAs (miRNAs) and demonstrate a framework that employs discovered miRNAs a...

PURPOSE To examine the expression of visual system homeobox 1 (Vsx1) in the mouse cornea and its potential role in the corneal wound response pathway. METHODS Expression of Vsx1 was examined by quantitative reverse-transcription PCR (qRT-PCR) in corneal tissue from developing and adult mice and from mice that had undergone alkali-burn corneal wounding. Immunolabeling and Vsx1 knock-in reporte...