Investigation of β defensin gene expression in the ocular anterior segment by semiquantitative RT-PCR
| Autor: | Peter J Watt, Ordan J. Lehmann, Imran R Hussain |
|---|---|
| Jazyk: | angličtina |
| Rok vydání: | 2000 |
| Předmět: |
Pathology
medicine.medical_specialty Conjunctiva genetic structures medicine.medical_treatment Lens Capsule Crystalline Gene Expression Iris Biology Defensins Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience Anterior Eye Segment medicine Humans RNA Messenger Defensin Corneal epithelium Antibacterial agent Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction fungi Epithelium Corneal Proteins Phacoemulsification Sensory Systems eye diseases Reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction Ophthalmology medicine.anatomical_structure Real-time polymerase chain reaction Original articles - Laboratory science sense organs |
| Popis: | AIM—To determine if β defensins are expressed in the anterior segment of the eye and to determine the temporal pattern of expression using a real time semiquantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). METHODS—Ocular tissue (corneal epithelium, conjunctiva, iris, and lens capsule) was collected from 23 patients undergoing surgery. Serial corneal or conjunctival impression cytology was performed on a separate group of 10 patients undergoing corneal tunnel phacoemulsification or trabeculectomy. The samples were analysed for β defensin mRNA by semiquantitative RT-PCR and the mRNA standardised for cell numbers. RESULTS—RT-PCR amplified β defensin 1 mRNA from all lens capsule (six) and corneal (five) samples and all but one of the conjunctival (six) and iris samples (six). β Defensin 2 mRNA was amplified from three of five corneal, two of six conjunctival, and none of the iris or capsule samples. The impression cytology samples demonstrated a decline in defensin expression over the three time points studied. There were no false positive results from either the no-RT or negative control samples. CONCLUSIONS—This preliminary study confirms that natural antibacterial peptides are expressed in the anterior segment of the eye. There appears to be a pattern to the expression with inducible β defensin 2 not expressed intraocularly and higher levels of β defensin 1 than β defensin 2 expressed in extraocular tissue. The implication is that β defensin 1 is constitutively produced in ocular tissues and represents a key component of the innate immune system. |
| Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
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