Early bleb parameters as long-term prognostic factors for surgical success: a retrospective observational study using three-dimensional anterior-segment optical coherence tomography.

Background: The object of this study is to investigate the effect of early bleb parameters measured by three-dimensional anterior-segment optical coherence tomography on the surgical success of trabeculectomy.

Methods: This retrospective study included 45 patients with 19 of exfoliation glaucoma, 17 of primary open angle glaucoma, 4 of neovascular glaucoma, 4 of uveitic glaucoma and 1 of glaucoma caused from familial amyloid polyneuropathy who underwent trabeculectomy. Bleb parameters, such as total bleb height, the position and the width of filtration openings on the scleral flap, bleb wall thickness, fluid-filled cavity height, and bleb wall intensity were assessed by three-dimensional anterior-segment optical coherence tomography 0.

Efficacy and safety of Ex-PRESS® mini shunt surgery versus trabeculectomy for neovascular glaucoma: a retrospective comparative study.

Background: The objective of this study is to evaluate and compare the short-term efficacy and safety of Ex-PRESS® mini shunt surgery and trabeculectomy for neovascular glaucoma (NVG).

Methods: Patients with NVG who underwent Ex-PRESS® mini shunt surgery or trabeculectomy as a primary glaucoma surgery between March 2013 and October 2015 were included in the study, and their medical charts were retrospectively reviewed. The Ex-PRESS® and trabeculectomy groups included 14 eyes and 30 eyes, respectively.

The Krüppel-Like Factor Gene Target Dusp14 Regulates Axon Growth and Regeneration.

Purpose: Adult central nervous system (CNS) neurons are unable to regenerate their axons after injury. Krüppel-like transcription factor (KLF) family members regulate intrinsic axon growth ability in vitro and in vivo, but mechanisms downstream of these transcription factors are not known.

Methods: Purified retinal ganglion cells (RGCs) were transduced to express exogenous KLF9, KLF16, KLF7, or KLF11; microarray analysis was used to identify downstream genes, which were screened for effects on axon growth.

Stimulation of the adenosine A3 receptor, not the A1 or A2 receptors, promote neurite outgrowth of retinal ganglion cells.

Among candidate neuroprotective agents, adenosine is thought to be a possible treatment for central nervous system disorders. Adenosine elicits biological effects through four G protein-coupled receptors (A, A, A, and A). The A and A receptors stimulate adenylyl cyclase (AC) and increase cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP) levels, whereas A and A receptors inhibit AC and decrease cAMP levels.

KLF9 and JNK3 Interact to Suppress Axon Regeneration in the Adult CNS.

Neurons in the adult mammalian CNS decrease in intrinsic axon growth capacity during development in concert with changes in Krüppel-like transcription factors (KLFs). KLFs regulate axon growth in CNS neurons including retinal ganglion cells (RGCs). Here, we found that knock-down of KLF9, an axon growth suppressor that is normally upregulated 250-fold in RGC development, promotes long-distance optic nerve regeneration in adult rats of both sexes.

Potential Neuroprotective Effects of an LSD1 Inhibitor in Retinal Ganglion Cells via p38 MAPK Activity.

Purpose: The epigenetic mechanisms associated with ocular neurodegenerative diseases remain unclear. The present study aimed to determine the role of lysine-specific demethylase 1 (LSD1), which represses transcription by removing the methyl group from methylated lysine 4 of histone H3, in retinal ganglion cell (RGC) survival, and to investigate the details of the neuroprotective mechanism of tranylcypromine, a major LSD1 inhibitor.

Methods: The authors evaluated whether tranylcypromine contributes to neuronal survival following stress-induced damage using primary cultured rat RGCs and in vivo N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA)-induced excitotoxicity.

Comparing Trabeculectomy Outcomes between First and Second Operated Eyes: A Multicenter Study.

Objective: To compare surgical outcomes between the first and second operated eyes in patients who underwent trabeculectomy in both eyes.

Methods: This retrospective clinical cohort study at five clinical centers in Japan included 84 patients with open-angle glaucoma who underwent primary trabeculectomy in both eyes. The primary outcome was surgical success or failure, with failure being defined according to three criteria: <20% reduction of the preoperative intraocular pressure (IOP), or Criterion A, IOP >21 mmHg; Criterion B, IOP >18 mmHg; or Criterion C, IOP >15 mmHg.

The Influence of Phacoemulsification on Surgical Outcomes of Trabeculectomy with Mitomycin-C for Uveitic Glaucoma.

Purpose: To evaluate the influence of phacoemulsification after trabeculectomy on the postoperative intraocular pressure (IOP) in eyes with uveitic glaucoma (UG).

Setting: Kumamoto University Hospital, Kumamoto, Japan.

Design: A retrospective cohort study.

Factors Influencing Aqueous Proinflammatory Cytokines and Growth Factors in Uveitic Glaucoma.

Purpose: To analyze the effects of factors on aqueous humor proinflammatory cytokine and growth factor levels in patients with uveitic glaucoma (UG).

Methods: In this cross-sectional study, we enrolled 143 participants: 1) UG patients (n = 39); 2) primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG) patients (n = 36); and 3) cataract surgery patients, as a comparative group (n = 68). Aqueous humor samples were obtained at the start of surgery.

Postoperative Changes in Aqueous Monocyte Chemotactic Protein-1 Levels and Bleb Morphology after Trabeculectomy vs. Ex-PRESS Shunt Surgery.

Purpose: To evaluate the postoperative changes in blebs and levels of aqueous monocyte chemotactic protein-1 (MCP-1) after trabeculectomy vs. Ex-PRESS tube shunt surgery.

Methods: Rabbits were subjected to trabeculectomy or Ex-PRESS tube shunt surgery and observed for up to 3 months.

In vivo imaging of axonal transport of mitochondria in the diseased and aged mammalian CNS.

The lack of intravital imaging of axonal transport of mitochondria in the mammalian CNS precludes characterization of the dynamics of axonal transport of mitochondria in the diseased and aged mammalian CNS. Glaucoma, the most common neurodegenerative eye disease, is characterized by axon degeneration and the death of retinal ganglion cells (RGCs) and by an age-related increase in incidence. RGC death is hypothesized to result from disturbances in axonal transport and in mitochondrial function.

Simultaneous increase in multiple proinflammatory cytokines in the aqueous humor in neovascular glaucoma with and without intravitreal bevacizumab injection.

Purpose: To investigate aqueous humor proinflammatory cytokine levels of patients with neovascular glaucoma (NVG), and to analyze the effects of background factors in the expression of these molecules.

Methods: This cross-sectional study enrolled 137 participants who were grouped into (1) primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG; n = 36) patients; (2) NVG patients (NVG; n = 33); and (3) cataract surgery patients as a comparative group (CG; n = 68). Aqueous humor samples were collected from the anterior chamber at the start of surgery, deposited in CryoTubes, registered, and stored at -80 °C until processing.

Trabeculectomy for open-angle glaucoma in phakic eyes vs in pseudophakic eyes after phacoemulsification: a prospective clinical cohort study.

Importance: Whether pseudophakic eyes are resistant to trabeculectomy remains unknown.

Objective: To determine the effect of previous phacoemulsification on surgical success of trabeculectomy with mitomycin C for open-angle glaucoma.

Design, Setting, And Participants: Prospective clinical cohort study at Kumamoto University Hospital, Kumamoto, Japan, among patients 55 years or older having open-angle glaucoma with intraocular pressure (IOP) of 22 mm Hg or higher, including 39 phakic eyes (phakic group) and 25 pseudophakic eyes after phacoemulsification (pseudophakic group).

[A prospective study of postoperative aqueous flare in trabeculectomy alone versus phacotrabeculectomy].

Purpose: To compare trabeculectomy alone with phacotrabeculectomy in postoperative aqueous flare.

Subjects And Methods: Aqueous flare was prospectively measured using a laser flare-cell meter in open-angle glaucoma patients with cataract undergoing trabeculectomy with either mitomycin C or phacotrabeculectomy with mitomycin C. Flare was measured before surgery and at 2 and 4 weeks after surgery.

Long-term outcomes and prognostic factors for trabeculectomy with mitomycin C in eyes with uveitic glaucoma: a retrospective cohort study.

Purpose: To elucidate the long-term outcomes and prognostic factors for trabeculectomy with mitomycin C (MMC) in eyes with uveitic glaucoma (UG).

Methods: A retrospective, consecutive, comparative cohort study was conducted with 204 patients who underwent trabeculectomy with MMC between 1999 and 2008 at 2 Japanese clinical centers. The study group included 101 eyes with UG and 103 eyes with primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG).

Heparan sulfate regulates intraretinal axon pathfinding by retinal ganglion cells.

PURPOSE. Heparan sulfate (HS) is abundantly expressed in the developing neural retina; however, its role in the intraretinal axon guidance of retinal ganglion cells (RGCs) remains unclear. In this study, the authors examined whether HS was essential for the axon guidance of RGCs toward the optic nerve head.

Success rates of trabeculotomy for steroid-induced glaucoma: a comparative, multicenter, retrospective cohort study.

Purpose: To evaluate the surgical outcomes of trabeculotomy for steroid-induced glaucoma.

Design: Multicenter, retrospective cohort study.

Methods: At 17 Japanese clinical centers, 121 steroid-induced glaucoma patients who underwent trabeculotomy between 1997 and 2006 were reviewed.

Trabeculectomy with mitomycin for open-angle glaucoma in phakic vs pseudophakic eyes after phacoemulsification.

Objective: To determine whether previous phacoemulsification adversely affects surgical prognosis of trabeculectomy with mitomycin for open-angle glaucoma.

Methods: The study is a retrospective, consecutive, comparative case series. At 2 clinical centers, we reviewed 226 medical records of eyes with open-angle glaucoma undergoing initial trabeculectomy, including 175 phakic eyes (phakic group) and 51 pseudophakic eyes that had previously undergone phacoemulsification with superior conjunctival incision (pseudophakic group).

Dynamic imaging of axonal transport in living retinal ganglion cells in vitro.

Purpose: Disruption of the axonal transport of neurotrophic factors plays a critical role in the apoptosis of retinal ganglion cells (RGCs) in glaucomatous optic neuropathy. Live-cell imaging in vitro was used in this study, to visualize and evaluate the axonal transport of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) in both living and axon-damaged RGCs.

Methods: Rat RGCs were purified by a two-step immunopanning method.

Combined intravitreal bevacizumab and trabeculectomy with mitomycin C versus trabeculectomy with mitomycin C alone for neovascular glaucoma.

Purpose: To evaluate the effects of intravitreal bevacizumab (IVB) before mitomycin C trabeculectomy (MMCT) for neovascular glaucoma (NVG).

Methods: The study is a retrospective, comparative, consecutive case series. The study group consisted of 57 eyes from 50 patients with NVG who underwent a first MMCT: 33 eyes were treated with MMCT alone between June 1, 2005 and May 17, 2007 (Control Group); and, 24 eyes were treated with a combination of IVB and MMCT after May 18, 2007 (IVB Group).

Heparan sulfate deficiency in periocular mesenchyme causes microphthalmia and ciliary body dysgenesis.

The heparan sulfate (HS) is a component of proteoglycans in the extracellular matrix and on cell surfaces, modulating developmental processes. The aim of this study is to investigate whether the defect of HS in the periocular mesenchyme impairs ocular morphogenesis. First, using Protein 0-Cre transgenic mice, we ablated Ext1, which encodes an indispensable enzyme for HS synthesis, in the developing periocular mesenchyme.

Heparan sulfate deficiency leads to Peters anomaly in mice by disturbing neural crest TGF-beta2 signaling.

During human embryogenesis, neural crest cells migrate to the anterior chamber of the eye and then differentiate into the inner layers of the cornea, the iridocorneal angle, and the anterior portion of the iris. When proper development does not occur, this causes iridocorneal angle dysgenesis and intraocular pressure (IOP) elevation, which ultimately results in developmental glaucoma. Here, we show that heparan sulfate (HS) deficiency in mouse neural crest cells causes anterior chamber dysgenesis, including corneal endothelium defects, corneal stroma hypoplasia, and iridocorneal angle dysgenesis.

Restricted post-trabeculectomy bleb formation by conjunctival scarring.

Purpose: To evaluate the effects of radial conjunctival incision during fornix-based trabeculectomy, and conjunctival scarring associated with previous ocular surgeries, for the restriction of bleb formation.

Methods: Digital photo-slit lamp images of filtering blebs, which had undergone fornix-based trabeculectomy with mitomycin C previously, were analysed. The area and the height of the bleb in the conjunctivae with radial incision (Ain and Hin, respectively) were compared with the area and the height of the bleb in the conjunctivae without radial incision (Ano and Hno, respectively).

Trabeculectomy with mitomycin C for neovascular glaucoma: prognostic factors for surgical failure.

Purpose: To evaluate the prognostic factors for surgical outcomes of trabeculectomy with mitomycin C (MMC) for neovascular glaucoma (NVG).

Design: Retrospective cohort study.

Methods: We reviewed the medical records of 101 patients (101 eyes) with NVG treated at Kumamoto University Hospital.