Significance of Fuchs Flecks in Patients With Pterygium/Pinguecula: Earliest Indicator of Ultraviolet Light Damage.

Purpose: Fuchs flecks (FFs) have been previously identified at the leading edge of pterygia and may represent collections of epithelial stem-like cells that give rise to this condition. This study aims to evaluate the clinical significance of FFs in patients with ocular surface disorders, such as pterygium and pinguecula, by in vivo confocal microscopy (IVCM).

Methods: This study is a Single-center, retrospective, observational case series of 40 eyes from 20 patients with clinical diagnoses of pinguecula or pterygium, or both.

Role of toll-like receptors in human iris pigment epithelial cells and their response to pathogen-associated molecular patterns.

Background: Toll-like receptor (TLR) activation is hypothesized to contribute to inflammatory eye disease including uveitis, yet the distribution pattern of TLRs in human uveal tissues remains poorly described. The purpose of this study was to investigate the expression profile of TLRs in human iris pigment epithelial cells (IPE) at the gene and protein level and examine the effect of pathogen-associated molecular patterns (PAMPs), such as Pam3CSK4.3HCl, Poly(I:C), lipopolysaccharides (LPS from E.

Peripheral blood responses to specific antigens and CD28 in sarcoidosis.

Background: Potential antigens inducing sarcoid inflammation include mycobacterial and auto-antigens. Paradoxically, peripheral anergy to common recall antigens also occurs, possibly due to impaired dendritic cell or regulatory T-cell responses, or impaired T-cell co-stimulation. The purpose of this study was to compare peripheral blood responses of patients with sarcoidosis to candidate antigens, and examine CD28 T-cell co-stimulation.

Bluebottle envenomation-induced crystalline keratopathy.

Purpose: To report a patient who developed a crystalline keratopathy after bluebottle envenomation of the cornea.

Method: Case report with histopathological correlation and literature review.

Results: A 61-year-old man presented to the Ophthalmology clinic after he was stung in the left eye by a bluebottle while swimming in the sea.

Iris pigment epithelial cells express a functional lipopolysaccharide receptor complex.

Purpose: Ocular pigment epithelial cells are hypothesized to play a role in the pathogenesis of acute anterior uveitis (AAU), where LPS activation of Toll-like receptors (TLRs) may serve as a trigger. In this study, the expression of LPS receptors in iris pigment epithelium (IPE) was determined.

Methods: RT-PCR, flow cytometry, Western blot, and immunohistochemistry were used to investigate the expression of the LPS receptor complex (TLR4, MD-2, and CD14) in primary human IPE.