The pathogenesis of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) is commonly associated with altered gut bacteria. However, whether the microbial dysbiosis that exists in human diabetic patients with or without retinopathy is different remains largely unknown. Here, we collected clinical information and fecal samples from 75 participants, including 25 diabetic patients without retinopathy (DM), 25 diabetic patients with retinopathy (DR), and 25 healthy controls (HC). The gut microbial composition in the three groups was analyzed using 16S ribosomal RNA (rRNA) gene sequencing. Microbial structure and composition differed in the three groups. The α and β diversities in both the DM and DR groups were reduced compared with those in the HC group. Blautia was the most abundant genus, especially in the DM group. In addition, increased levels of Bifidobacterium and Lactobacillus and decreased levels of Escherichia-Shigella, Faecalibacterium, Eubacterium_hallii_group and Clostridium genera were observed in the DM and DR groups compared with the HC group. Furthermore, a biomarker set of 25 bacterial families, which could distinguish patients in the DR group from those in the DM and HC groups was identified, with the area under the curve values ranging from 0.69 to 0.85. Of note, Pasteurellaceae, which was increased in DM and decreased in DR compared with HC, generated a high AUC (0.74) as an individual predictive biomarker. Moreover, 14 family biomarkers were associated with fasting blood glucose levels or diabetes, with most of them being negatively correlated. In summary, our study establishes compositional alterations of gut microbiota in DM and DR, suggesting the potential use of gut microbiota as a non-invasive biomarker for clinical and differential diagnosis, as well as identifying potential therapeutic targets of diabetic retinopathy.
Intravitreal transplantation of UC-MSCs revealed the neuroprotection in the microbead-injection induced OHT. The effects could be related to the secretion of tropic factors (BDNF and GDNF) and the modulation of glial cell activation.
Background Central serous chorioretinopathy (CSC) is a widespread retinal disorder, and 30-50% of patients eventually result in retinal pigment epithelium atrophy and irreversible vision loss. Aim of the review To evaluate the effectiveness of medications based on anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (anti-VEGF) on central serous chorioretinopathy (CSC). Method A systematic search on anti-VEGF medication treatments for CSC was performed in Pubmed, Embase, and the Cochrane Library prior to May 2016. The main outcome variables were best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) and central macular thickness (CMT). All effects were analyzed via Review Manager 5.3. Results Fourteen studies were incorporated with a total of 266 eyes, divided into a comparative group and a non-comparative group. The comparative group included acute and chronic CSC studies, while the non-comparative group included chronic CSC only. Meta-analysis revealed that for acute CSC, anti-VEGF treatment was not superior to observation at a 6-month follow-up in BCVA and CMT. For chronic CSC in the comparative group, no significant difference was observed between anti-VEGF treatment and observation in BCVA; however, the observed difference in CMT (WMD = -67.78, 95% CI 20.17-115.38) was statistically significant. In the non-comparative group, significant differences were observed after anti-VEGF treatment in BCVA and CMT at 1, 6, and 12 months follow-ups. Conclusion Our meta-analysis partially indicated that anti-VEGF medications might be a viable choice for the treatment of chronic CSC; however, due to the self-limiting nature of CSC, care should be applied in the clinical application of anti-VEGF medications.
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