METHODS: The aqueous humor samples were collected from 16 eyes with subretinal fibrosis due to nAMD (SRFi group), 33 eyes with nAMD without subretinal fibrosis (nAMD group) and 28 eyes with cataract patients (control group). Clinical samples were analyzed for 5 cytokines,including vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), interleukin-6 (IL-6), basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF), transforming growth factor-α (TGF-α), platelet-derived growth factor-BB (PDGF-BB).
RESULTS: Aqueous humor cytokines VEGF and bFGF were significantly higher in nAMD patients than controls (all P < 0.05), and VEGF, bFGF and TGF-α levels were significantly higher in SRFi patients than controls (all P < 0.05). No significant differences in 4 cytokine levels were observed between nAMD and SRFi patients in aqueous humor. We also identified a positive correlation between the aqueous humor levels of IL-6 and VEGF in the SRFi group, while bFGF and TGF-α in the nAMD group. Moreover, VEGF levels were strongly related to BCVA, and bFGF levels were positively related to the maximum thickness of subretinal hyperreflective material (SHRM) in fibrosis due to nAMD.
CONCLUSIONS: VEGF and bFGF levels in aqueous humor were elevated in macular neovascularization with and without subretinal fibrosis. TGF-α levels exclusively differed in neovascular AMD with fibrosis. Cytokines are distributed differently and play a synergistic role in different stages (angiogenesis and fibrogenesis) of nAMD. The bFGF levels could predict the negative prognosis in fibrosis due to nAMD.
方法:收集16只眼因nAMD导致视网膜下纤维化(SRFi组)的房水样本,33只眼无视网膜下纤维化的nAMD患者(nAMD组)和28只眼白内障患者(对照组)。分析临床样本的5种细胞因子,包括血管内皮生长因子(VEGF),白细胞介素-6(IL-6),碱性成纤维细胞生长因子(bFGF),转化生长因子-α(TGF-α),血小板衍生生长因子-BB(PDGF-BB)。
结果:nAMD患者房水细胞因子VEGF和bFGF明显高于对照组(均P<0.05),和VEGF,SRFi患者bFGF和TGF-α水平明显高于对照组(均P<0.05)。在房水中nAMD和SRFi患者之间没有观察到4种细胞因子水平的显着差异。我们还确定了SRFi组中IL-6和VEGF的房水水平之间的正相关。而nAMD组的bFGF和TGF-α。此外,VEGF水平与BCVA密切相关,bFGF水平与nAMD纤维化中视网膜下高反射材料(SHRM)的最大厚度呈正相关。
结论:在有和没有视网膜下纤维化的黄斑新生血管中,房水中的VEGF和bFGF水平升高。TGF-α水平在伴有纤维化的新生血管性AMD中完全不同。细胞因子分布不同,并且在nAMD的不同阶段(血管生成和纤维发生)发挥协同作用。bFGF水平可以预测nAMD纤维化的阴性预后。