Analysis of tear inflammatory molecules and clinical correlations in evaporative dry eye disease caused by meibomian gland dysfunction

Abstract

Purpose To compare the levels of inflammatory molecules in tear samples between patients with meibomian gland dysfunction (MGD)-related evaporative dry eye (EDE) and healthy subjects and to analyze the correlations between the levels of tear inflammatory molecules and ocular surface parameters. Methods A total of 30 MGD-related EDE patients (48 eyes) and ten healthy volunteers (15 eyes) were enrolled. Dry eye-related examinations and questionnaires were obtained from all participants. The levels of nine inflammatory molecules were determined through multiplex bead analysis. Results Inflammatory molecules including ICAM-1, IFN-γ, CXCL8/IL-8, IL-6, TNF-α and IL-12p70 were detected in 100% of the patients, while IL-1α, IL-1β and IL-10 were detected in 56.25%, 13.60% and 45.83% of the patients, respectively. Moreover, ICAM-1, IL-8, IL-6, TNF-α, IL-12p70 and IFN-γ were detected in 86.67–100% of the healthy subjects, and the detection rates of IL-10, IL-1α and IL-1β were below 50%. The levels of IL-8, IL-6, IFN-γ and ICAM-1 were significantly higher in the patient group compared with the control group. In addition, IL-8 and IL-6 were negatively correlated with Schirmer I test. Besides, IFN-γ was negatively correlated with tear film breakup time. Furthermore, ICAM-1 and IL-6 were positively correlated with meibography score. Conclusions Collectively, patients with MGD-related EDE had higher levels of inflammatory molecules in their tears, and some molecules were correlated with ocular surface parameters. These findings suggested that inflammation played an important role in MGD-related EDE, and several inflammatory molecules could be used in the diagnosis and the treatment of MGD-related EDE.

COVID-19 Ocular Prophylaxis: The Potential Role of Ozonated-Oils in Liposome Eyedrop Gel

“…The corneal tissues were then harvested and used in SEM analysis, hematoxylin and eosin staining, and real-time PCR to detect the inflammatory marker (interleukin [IL]-8) and matrix metallopeptidase-9 (MMP-9). 26 , 27 …”

“…However, on day 19, the RT-PCR result was negative for SARS-CoV-2. 26 In another report, one hospitalized patient had SARS-CoV-2-positive conjunctival swabs up to day 21 from symptom onset; however, after a few days, the virus was undetectable in nasal swabs. Five days later, the virus was undetectable in the conjunctival swab but was detected on day 27, suggesting sustained replication of the virus in the conjunctiva.…”

“…The corneal tissues were then harvested and used in SEM analysis, hematoxylin and eosin staining, and real-time PCR to detect the inflammatory marker (interleukin [IL]-8) and matrix metallopeptidase-9 (MMP-9). 26,27 Figure 3 shows the overall morphology of the control corneal tissue, control dry eye, and the dry eye treated with OED for 24 hours, as observed under a light microscope. The tissue morphology of the control was preserved (Figs.…”

Ocular Surface Changes Associated with Ophthalmic Surgery

“…The conjunctival expression of matrix metalloproteinase 9 and transglutaminase 2 was shown to be higher in patients with Meibomian gland dysfunction and showed inflammation of epithelial damage due to impaired tear secretion [ 20 ]. Patients with Meibomian gland dysfunction-related DED also had higher levels of inflammatory molecules, such as IL-6, IL-8, IFN-γ and ICAM-1, in their tears compared to control subjects [ 21 ]. In a study conducted by Macri et al, patients with DED were also shown to have increased levels of oxidative stress by assessing lipid peroxidation with the LP-CHOLOX test [ 22 ].…”

Neutrophil/Lymphocyte Ratio as an Inflammatory Predictor of Dry Eye Disease: A Case-Control Study

“… 2 Although it is recognized that inflammation is regarded as a key factor in the development of DED as well as the cause of ocular symptoms and signs, 3–5 the exact mechanism of inflammation in DED remains unclear. It has long been considered that ocular inflammatory markers could be related with the incidence of DED, 6 however, the relatively smallamount of tear samples and high detection cost have limited their clinical application in DED cases.…”