1. Eye Drop Instillation of the Rac1 Modulator CNF1 Attenuates Retinal Gliosis and Ameliorates Visual Performance in a Rat Model of Hypertensive Retinopathy.
- Author
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Matteucci A, Ricceri L, Fabbri A, Fortuna A, Travaglione S, Guidotti M, Martinelli A, Villa M, Pricci F, Maroccia Z, Campana G, Malchiodi-Albedi F, Fiorentini C, and Loizzo S
- Subjects
- Animals, Bacterial Toxins administration & dosage, Disease Models, Animal, Escherichia coli Proteins administration & dosage, Gliosis physiopathology, Hypertensive Retinopathy physiopathology, Male, Ophthalmic Solutions, Rats, Rats, Inbred SHR, Retina physiopathology, Bacterial Toxins therapeutic use, Escherichia coli Proteins therapeutic use, Gliosis drug therapy, Hypertensive Retinopathy drug therapy, Retina drug effects, Vision, Ocular drug effects
- Abstract
In hypertensive retinopathy, the retinal damage due to high blood pressure is accompanied by increased expression of Glial Fibrillary Acidic Protein (GFAP), which indicates a role of neuroinflammatory processes in such a retinopathy. Proteins belonging to the Rho GTPase family, particularly Rac1, are involved in the activation of Müller glia and in the progression of photoreceptor degeneration, and may thus represent a novel candidate for therapeutic intervention following central nervous system inflammation. In this paper, we have observed that topical administration as eye drops of Cytotoxic Necrotizing Factor 1 (CNF1), a Rho GTPase modulator, surprisingly improves electrophysiological and behavioral visual performances in aged spontaneously hypertensive rats. Furthermore, such functional improvement is accompanied by a reduction of Rac1 activity and retinal GFAP expression. Our results suggest that Rac1 inhibition through CNF1 topical administration may represent a new strategy to target retinal gliosis., (Copyright © 2019 IBRO. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)
- Published
- 2019
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