A Phase 2 Clinical Trial on the Use of Cibinetide for the Treatment of Diabetic Macular Edema.

Purpose: Evaluating the effects of cibinetide in diabetic macular edema (DME).

Methods: Phase 2 trial. Naïve patients with >400 µm central retinal thickness (CRT) DME in one/both eyes were recruited (May 2016-April 2017) at the Belfast Health and Social Care Trust.

Circulating Leukocyte Alterations and the Development/Progression of Diabetic Retinopathy in Type 1 Diabetic Patients - A Pilot Study.

Background/aims: The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between alterations in circulating leukocytes and the initiation and progression of DR in people with type 1 diabetes (T1D).

Methods: Forty-one patients with T1D [13 mild non-proliferative DR (mNPDR), 14 active proliferative DR (aPDR) and 14 inactive PDR (iPDR)], and 13 age- and gender-matched healthy controls were recruited prospectively. Circulating leukocytes, including CD4 and CD8 T-cells, CD14CD16, CD14CD16 and CD14CD16 monocytes; CD16HLA-DR neutrophils, CD19 B-cells and CD56 natural killer cells and their cell surface adhesion molecules and chemokine receptors (HLA-DR, CD62L, CCR2, CCR5, CD66a, CD157 and CD305) were examined by flow cytometry.

STAT3 activation in circulating myeloid-derived cells contributes to retinal microvascular dysfunction in diabetes.

Background: Leukostasis is a key patho-physiological event responsible for capillary occlusion in diabetic retinopathy. Circulating monocytes are the main cell type entrapped in retinal vessels in diabetes. In this study, we investigated the role of the signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3) pathway in diabetes-induced immune cell activation and its contribution to retinal microvascular degeneration.