The present data suggest that hyperglycemia increases O-GlcNAcylation in DR and that O-GlcNAcylation of the p65 subunit of NF-κB is involved in hyperglycemia-induced NF-κB activation and RGC death in DR.

Background To evaluate the prevalence and risk factors associated with myopia and high myopia in children in South Korea. Methods A total of 983 children 5–18 years of age who participated in the Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 2016–2017 (KNHANES VII), a nationwide population-based cross-sectional study, were evaluated. Myopia and high myopia were defined as a spherical equivalent (SE) ≤ − 0.5 diopters (D) and SE ≤ --6.0 D. The association between refractive errors and potential risk factors for myopia was analyzed. Results The prevalence of myopia and high myopia was 65.4 and 6.9%, respectively. Older age and parental myopia were significantly associated with both myopia and high myopia, while higher body mass index (BMI) was associated with high myopia only. Although the proportion of subjects who spent more time on near work activities (≥4 h/day) was sequentially increased with increased refractive error, this tendency was not statistically significant by multivariable logistic regression. Conclusions Korean children had a high prevalence of myopia and high myopia. In this age group, the risk of myopia increased with aging and parental myopia. Higher BMI may be associated with high myopia.

The observed changes in retinal morphology suggest that I/R injury promotes retinal degeneration. Increased expression of caspase-8 and caspase-3 mRNA indicates apoptosis activation. Res, however, suppresses apoptosis via downregulation of caspase-8 and caspase-3 expression.

PurposeTo describe the clinical manifestations of herpes simplex keratitis (HSK) in a tertiary referral center in South Korea and to determine whether ascorbic acid treatment prevents recurrence of herpetic epithelial keratitis.MethodsThis retrospective cohort study included all consecutive patients with herpetic keratitis referred to our center from January 2010 to January 2015. Clinical features, ocular complications, and recurrences were recorded.ResultsIn total, 149 eyes of the 133 patients (72 male and 61 female) were followed for an average of 24.6 ± 13.2 months. Sixteen (12.0%) patients had bilateral HSK. The most frequent HSK subtype was epithelial keratitis (49.7%), which was followed by stromal keratitis (23.5%). Epithelial keratitis was the most likely subtype to recur. Complications occurred in 122 (81.9%) eyes. The most common complication was corneal opacity. Recurrences were observed in 48 (32.2%) eyes. The recurrence rates were lower in the prophylactic oral antiviral agent group (16 / 48 eyes, 33.3% vs. 49 / 101 eyes, 48.5%) and the ascorbic acid treatment group (13 / 48 eyes, 27.1% vs. 81 / 101 eyes, 70.3%) compared with the groups without medications. Univariate logistic regression analysis revealed that both factors significantly reduced the risk of recurrence (acyclovir: odds ratio, 0.25; 95% confidence intervals, 0.12 to 0.51; ascorbic acid: odds ratio, 0.51; 95% confidence intervals, 0.20 to 0.91).ConclusionsThis retrospective study described the clinical findings of HSK in a tertiary referral center in South Korea. Prophylactic oral antiviral agent treatment and oral ascorbic acid administration may lower the risk of recurrence.

Background: Serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25 (OH) D) levels are associated with various pathologic ocular conditions. Few studies have assessed 25 (OH) D concentrations in non-serum specimens, and none to date has assessed 25 (OH) D concentrations in human aqueous humor and their association with ocular diseases. This study investigated the possible correlations between 25 (OH) D concentrations in aqueous humor and serum and whether vitamin D concentrations in aqueous humor were associated with cataract. Methods: This study prospectively enrolled 136 patients, including 87 with senile cataract and 49 with diabetic cataract, who underwent cataract surgery from January to November 2017. 25 (OH) D was measured in aqueous humor and serum specimens collected from all patients, and their correlation was analyzed statistically. Clinical and laboratory data, including the results of ophthalmologic examinations, were compared in the two groups of cataract patients. Results:No correlation was observed between 25 (OH) D concentrations in aqueous humor and serum (P = 0.381). 25 (OH) D concentrations in aqueous humor were significantly higher in patients with diabetic than senile cataract (P = 0.006). Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that the adjusted odds ratio for diabetic cataract for the highest compared with the lowest quartile of 25 (OH) D concentration in aqueous humor was 4.36 ng/ml (95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.33-14.34 ng/ml; P = 0.015). Multivariate linear regression analysis showed that 25(OH) D concentration in aqueous humor was 2.68 ng/ml (95% CI: 0.34-5.01 ng/ml; P = 0.025) higher in patients with diabetic than senile cataract. Conclusions: 25(OH) D concentrations in aqueous humor and serum did not correlate with each other. Higher 25(OH) D level in aqueous humor was associated with diabetic cataract. These findings suggest that studies of vitamin D levels in patients with ocular conditions should include measurements of vitamin D levels in aqueous humor.

Background/Aims: The present study addresses the role of tonicity response element binding protein (TonEBP) in retinal ganglion cell (RGC) death in diabetic retinopathy and the impact of Aralia elata extract on the TonEBP/RGC interaction. Methods: Diabetes was induced in C57BL/6 mice by intraperitoneal injection of streptozotocin (STZ). Control mice received phosphate-buffered saline. After five injections of STZ or saline buffer, A. elata extract was administered by daily oral tube feeding for 7 weeks. All mice were killed at 2 months after the last injection of STZ or saline and the extent of cell death together with the protein expression levels of TonEBP, aldose reductase (AR) and nuclear factor-kappa B (NF-κB) were examined. Results: Terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated dUTP nick end labeling (TUNEL)-positive signals were colocalized with TonEBP-immunoreactive RGCs. The apoptotic cell death of RGCs and the expression levels of TonEBP, AR and NF-κB were significantly increased in the retinas of diabetic mice compared with controls at 2 months after the induction of diabetes. However, these changes were effectively blocked by the administration of A. elata extract. Conclusions: These results indicate that A. elata prevents diabetes-induced RGC apoptosis and downregulates TonEBP expression. Therefore, A. elata extract may have therapeutic potential to prevent diabetes-induced retinal neurodegeneration in diabetic retinopathy.

The objective of this study was to determine the effect of vitamin C supplementation on reducing the size of corneal opacity resulting from infectious keratitis.The study included 82 patients (82 affected eyes), admitted for infectious keratitis from January 2009 to August 2013, who were followed for more than 3 months. Patients were divided into control, oral vitamin C (3 g/d), and intravenous vitamin C (20 g/d) groups during hospitalization. Corneal opacity sizes were measured using anterior segment photographs and Image J program (version 1.27; National Institutes of Health, Jinju, South Korea) at admission, discharge, and final follow-up. The corneal opacity size used for analysis was the measured opacity size divided by the size of the whole cornea.The corneal opacity size decreased by 0.03 ± 0.10 in the oral vitamin C group, 0.07 ± 0.22 in the intravenous vitamin C group, and 0.02 ± 0.15 in the control group. Intravenous vitamin C reduced the corneal opacity size more than oral vitamin C (P = 0.043). Intravenous vitamin C produced greater reduction in corneal opacity size in younger patients (P = 0.015) and those with a hypopyon (P = 0.036).Systemic vitamin C supplementation reduced the size of corneal opacity resulting from infectious keratitis. Intravenous vitamin C was more beneficial than oral supplementation, especially in younger patients and those with hypopyon.

Dry eye syndrome related to radiation therapy is relatively common and can severely impair a patient’s daily life. The nuclear factor of activated T cells 5(NFAT5) is well known for its osmoprotective effect under hyperosmolar conditions, and it also has immune-modulating functions. We investigated the role of NFAT5 and the protective effect of α-lipoic acid(ALA) on radiation-induced lacrimal gland (LG) injuries. Rats were assigned to control, ALA only, radiation only, and ALA administered prior to irradiation groups. The head and neck area, including the LG, was evenly irradiated with 2 Gy/minute using a photon 6-MV linear accelerator. NFAT5 expression was enhanced and localized in the LG tissue after irradiation and was related to cellular apoptosis. ALA had a protective effect on radiation-induced LG injury through the inhibition of NFAT5 expression and NFAT5-dependent signaling pathways. Functional radiation–induced damage of the LG and cornea was also restored with ALA treatment. NFAT5 expression and its dependent signaling pathways were deeply related to radiation-induced dry eye, and the condition was improved by ALA treatment. Our results suggest a potential role of NFAT5 and NF-κB in the proinflammatory effect in LGs and cornea, which offers a target for new therapies to treat dry eye syndrome.