Fuchs endothelial corneal dystrophy: an updated review

Altamirano, Francisco; Ortiz-Morales, Gustavo; O’Connor-Cordova, Mario A.; Sancén-Herrera, Juan Pablo; Zavala, Judith; Valdez-Garcia, Jorge E.

doi:10.1007/s10792-024-02994-1

Cited by 3 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 45 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…FECD is a slow-onset complex genetic disorder characterized by the progressive degeneration of the corneal endothelium, which eventually results in irreversible corneal edema and vision loss [ 4 ]. Corneal transplantation is still the mainstay of treatment for advanced FECD cases [ 5 ], among which posterior lamellar keratoplasty, such as Descemet’s stripping automated endothelial keratoplasty (DSAEK) or Descemet’s membrane endothelial keratoplasty (DMEK), has been emerging as the most frequently performed corneal transplant procedure in patients with FECD [ 6 ]. Descemet stripping only (DSO) has been suggested to be a viable treatment option for certain cases of FECD [ 7 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Applications of Imaging Technologies in Fuchs Endothelial Corneal Dystrophy: A Narrative Literature Review

Han,

Liu,

Liu

et al. 2024

Bioengineering

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Fuchs endothelial corneal dystrophy (FECD) is a complex genetic disorder characterized by the slow and progressive degeneration of corneal endothelial cells. Thus, it may result in corneal endothelial decompensation and irreversible corneal edema. Moreover, FECD is associated with alterations in all corneal layers, such as thickening of the Descemet membrane, stromal scarring, subepithelial fibrosis, and the formation of epithelial bullae. Hence, anterior segment imaging devices that enable precise measurement of functional and anatomical changes in the cornea are essential for the management of FECD. In this review, the authors will introduce studies on the application of various imaging modalities, such as anterior segment optical coherence tomography, Scheimpflug corneal tomography, specular microscopy, in vitro confocal microscopy, and retroillumination photography, in the diagnosis and monitoring of FECD and discuss the results of these studies. The application of novel technologies, including image processing technology and artificial intelligence, that are expected to further enhance the accuracy, precision, and speed of the imaging technologies will also be discussed.

show abstract

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Applications of Imaging Technologies in Fuchs Endothelial Corneal Dystrophy: A Narrative Literature Review

Han,

Liu,

Liu

et al. 2024

Bioengineering

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

Suppressing Pro-Apoptotic Proteins by siRNA in Corneal Endothelial Cells Protects against Cell Death

Staehlke,

Mahajan,

Thieme

et al. 2024

Biomedicines

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Corneal endothelial cells (CE) are critical for the cornea’s transparency. For severe corneal damage, corneal tissue transplantation is the most promising option for restoring vision. However, CE apoptotic cell death occurs during the storage of donor corneas for transplantation. This study used small interfering (si)RNA-mediated silencing of pro-apoptotic proteins as a novel strategy to protect CE against apoptosis. Therefore, the pro-apoptotic proteins Bax and Bak were silenced in the human corneal endothelial cell line (HCEC-12) by transfection with Accell™siRNA without any adverse effects on cell viability. When apoptosis was induced, e.g., etoposide, the caspase-3 activity and Annexin V-FITC/PI assay indicated a significantly reduced apoptosis rate in Bax+Bak-siRNA transfected HCECs compared to control (w/o siRNA). TUNEL assay in HCECs exposed also significantly lower cell death in Bax+Bak-siRNA (7.5%) compared to control (w/o siRNA: 32.8%). In ex vivo donor corneas, a significant reduction of TUNEL-positive CEs in Bax+Bak-siRNA corneas (8.1%) was detectable compared to control-treated corneas (w/o siRNA: 27.9%). In this study, we demonstrated that suppressing pro-apoptotic siRNA leads to inhibiting CE apoptosis. Gene therapy with siRNA may open a new translational approach for corneal tissue treatment in the eye bank before transplantation, leading to graft protection and prolonged graft survival.

show abstract

Expression of Hormones’ Receptors in Human Corneal Endothelium from Fuchs’ Dystrophy: A Possible Gender’ Association

De Piano,

Abicca,

Dinu

et al. 2024

JCM

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Background: Age and sex are the most significant risk of factors for advanced Fuchs dystrophy. Nevertheless, few data are available on the hormone’s receptor pattern expressed in adult and advanced fuchs endothelial corneal dystrophy (FECD). We investigated the impact of gender, growth factors and extracellular matrix (ECM) regulatory proteins expressed by the dystrophic endothelia. Methods: Ten dystrophic endothelial tissues and 10 normal endothelial sheets (corneoscleral specimens; Eye Bank) were used for this characterization study. Hormones’ receptors (ERα, AR, PR, SHBG), few growth factors (VEGFA, βNGF, TGFβ1), some ECM regulators (MMP1, MMP7) and few inflammatory cytokines (IFNγ, IL10) were analyzed by real-time RT-PCR. Results: ERα transcripts were significantly increased, AR and SHBG transcripts were decreased in Fuchs endothelia from female patients, and no changes were detected for PR transcripts. VEGFA, βNGF and TGFβ1 transcripts were upregulated in Fuchs’ endothelia, but not significantly linked to gender. High MMP1 and low MMP7 transcripts’ expression were detected in Fuchs’ specimens, mainly in males than females. An increased IFNγ (Th1) transcript expression was observed in females than males, and a trend to increase for IL10 (Th2) transcripts was detected in males than females. Conclusions: Our findings clearly indicate that hormone receptors, growth factors and matrix mediators as well as a Th1 pathway are predominant in Fuchs’ dystrophy, displaying a pattern of expression specific for the female phenotype. The differential expression of hormones’ receptors and the Th1/Th2 ratio might prompt to new theories to be tested in vitro and in vivo models, such as the use of hormonal substitute for counteracting this endothelial cell lost.

show abstract

Fuchs endothelial corneal dystrophy: an updated review

Cited by 3 publications

References 45 publications

Applications of Imaging Technologies in Fuchs Endothelial Corneal Dystrophy: A Narrative Literature Review

Applications of Imaging Technologies in Fuchs Endothelial Corneal Dystrophy: A Narrative Literature Review

Suppressing Pro-Apoptotic Proteins by siRNA in Corneal Endothelial Cells Protects against Cell Death

Expression of Hormones’ Receptors in Human Corneal Endothelium from Fuchs’ Dystrophy: A Possible Gender’ Association

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About