Thrombospondin 1 Mediates Autophagy Upon Inhibition of the Rho-Associated Protein Kinase Inhibitor.

Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is a degenerative eye disease leading to central vision loss and is characterized by dysregulated autophagy of the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) layer. Recent studies have suggested that rho-associated protein kinase (ROCK) inhibitors may enhance autophagy in neurodegenerative diseases and promote the survival of RPE cells. This study investigated the effect of ROCK inhibitors on autophagy gene expression and autophagic vacuole formation in a human RPE (ARPE-19) cell line.

Performance of a Deep Learning System and Performance of Optometrists for the Detection of Glaucomatous Optic Neuropathy Using Colour Retinal Photographs.

Background/objectives: Glaucoma is the leading cause of irreversible blindness, with a significant proportion of cases remaining undiagnosed globally. The interpretation of optic disc and retinal nerve fibre layer images poses challenges for optometrists and ophthalmologists, often leading to misdiagnosis. AI has the potential to improve diagnosis.

Aqueous humour concentration of topically applied 2.0% ganciclovir eye drops in eyes with cytomegalovirus anterior uveitis and endotheliitis.

Background: To investigate the level of ganciclovir in the aqueous humour (AH) following topical application of 2.0% ganciclovir eye drop in eyes with cytomegalovirus (CMV) anterior segment infection.

Methods: This is a prospective, non-randomised, interventional clinical study.

Vat photopolymerization 3D printing optimization: Analysis of print conditions and print quality for complex geometries and ocular applications.

3D printing, also known as additive manufacturing, continues to reshape manufacturing paradigms in healthcare by providing customized on-demand object fabrication. However, stereolithography-based 3D printers encounter a conflict between optimizing printing parameters, requiring more time, and print efficiency, requiring less time. Moreover, commonly used metrics to assess shape fidelity of 3D printed hydrogel materials like 'circularity' and 'printability' are limited by the soft nature of hydrogels, that can cause irregularities in their boundary.

Understanding the effects of different transcranial magnetic stimulation control protocols: a behavioral and neural perspective.

Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) is a noninvasive stimulation technique for modulating brain activity. However, selecting optimal control protocols to account for their neural and non-neural effects remains a challenge. To this end, the present event-related potential (ERP) study investigated the behavioral and neural effects of three commonly used control protocols, namely, sham stimulation and real stimulation with continuous theta burst stimulation (c-TBS) over the vertex and primary visual cortex (V1), on a given task manipulating pitch in voice auditory feedback.

Associations of Metabolically Healthy Obesity and Retinal Age Gap.

Purpose: We investigated the association between metabolically healthy obesity (MHO) and retinal age gap and explored potential sex differences in this association.

Methods: This study included 30,335 participants from the UK Biobank. Body mass index (BMI) was classified into normal weight, overweight, and obesity.

Impact of Astigmatism on Axial Elongation in School-Age Children: A Five-Year Population-Based Study in Tianjin, China.

Purpose: To investigate the progression rates of axial length (AXL) among school-age children with baseline astigmatism and spherical ametropia.

Methods: Annual vision screenings were conducted at seven schools in Tianjin, China, from 2018 to 2022. Ocular biometry and non-cycloplegic autorefraction were collected.

Cone-rod homeobox transcriptionally activates TCF7 to promote the proliferation of retinal pigment epithelial and retinoblastoma cells .

Aim: To investigate the proliferation regulatory effect of cone-rod homeobox (CRX) in retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) and retinoblastoma (RB) cells to explore the potential application and side effect (oncogenic potential) of CRX-based gene therapy in RPE-based retinopathies.

Methods: Adult human retinal pigment epithelial (ARPE)-19 and human retinal pigment epithelial (RPE)-1 cells and Y79 RB cell were used in the study. Genetic manipulation was performed by lentivirus-based technology.

Cross-population validation of the PreMO risk indicator for predicting myopia onset in children.

Purpose: The Predicting Myopia Onset and progression (PreMO) risk indicator, developed using data generated from white children in the UK, incorporates age, spherical equivalent refraction (SER), axial length (AL) and parental myopia to stratify the likelihood of developing myopia. This study evaluated the PreMO's predictive accuracy using prospective datasets from independent samples of children in Hong Kong (HK) and an ethnically diverse cohort of children in the United Kingdom.

Methods: Non-myopic children (SER > -0.

Choroidal Thickness and Visual Acuity in High Myopia Without Myopic Maculopathy: Insights From a Chinese Population Study.

Purpose: To evaluate the association of choroidal thickness (ChT) with best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) in patients with high myopia (HM) and without myopic maculopathy.

Methods: This study was a retrospective, cross-sectional study of participants aged 7 to 70 years with bilateral HM but without myopic maculopathy. Swept-source optical coherence tomography was used to measure ChT at the fovea.

Bacteria carrying mobile colistin resistance genes and their control measures, an updated review.

The plasmid encoded mobile colistin resistance (MCRs) enzyme poses a significant challenge to the clinical efficacy of colistin, which is frequently employed as a last resort antibiotic for treating infections caused by multidrug resistant bacteria. This transferase catalyzes the addition of positively charged phosphoethanolamine to lipid A of the outer membrane of gram-negative bacteria, thereby facilitating the acquired colistin resistance. This review aims to summarize and critically discuss recent advancements in the distribution and pathogenesis of mcr-positive bacteria, as well as the various control measures available for treating these infections.

Are Optometrists Prepared to Be Involved in Post-Stroke Rehabilitation?

Background/objectives: Stroke survivors often experience various visual consequences that impact their daily life and may benefit from visual interventions. However, some of these usually go unaddressed as optometrists are rarely included in the post-stroke care pathway. Yet, optometrists are interested in contributing to the care of these patients.

Blue Light Controlled Supramolecular Soft Robotics of Phenylazothiazole Amphiphiles for Rapid Macroscopic Actuations.

Nature preprograms sophisticated processes in operating molecular machines at the nanoscale, amplifying the molecular motion across multiple length-scales, and controlling movements in living organisms. Supramolecular soft robotics serve as a new alternative to hard robotics, are able to transform and amplify collective motions of the supramolecularly assembled molecular machines in attaining macroscopic motions, upon photoirradiation. By taking advantage of oriented supramolecular macroscopic soft scaffold, here the first rapid macroscopic movements of supramolecular robotic materials driven by visible light are presented.

Identification of Potential Growth-Related Proteins in Chick Vitreous during Emmetropization Using SWATH-MS and Targeted-Based Proteomics (MRMHR).

The vitreous humor (VH) is a transparent gelatin-like substance that occupies two-thirds of the eyeball and undergoes the most significant changes during eye elongation. Quantitative proteomics on the normal growth period in the VH could provide new insights into understanding its progression mechanism in the early stages of myopia. In this study, a data-independent acquisition (SWATH-MS) was combined with targeted LC-ESI-MS/MS to identify and quantify the relative protein changes in the vitreous during the normal growth period (4, 7, 14, 21 and 28 days old) in the chick model.

Diminished light sensitivities of ON alpha retinal ganglion cells observed in a mouse model of hyperglycemia.

This study aimed to investigate potential functional changes in retinal ganglion cells (RGCs) in a mouse model of hyperglycemia and explore possible therapeutic approaches. Hyperglycemia resembling type 1 diabetes mellitus (DM) was induced in C57BL/6 mice through intraperitoneal injection of streptozotocin (STZ). Blood glucose levels were confirmed to be elevated after 1 week and 4 weeks of injection.

Multiplexed Target Profiling with Integrated Chemical Genomics and Chemical Proteomics.

Target identification is crucial for elucidating the mechanisms of bioactive molecules in drug discovery. However, traditional methods assess compounds individually, making it challenging to efficiently examine multiple compounds in parallel, especially for structurally diverse compounds. This study reports a novel strategy called chemical genomics-facilitated chemical proteomics (CGCP) for multiplexing the target identification of bioactive small molecules.

Interaction of retinal electrophysiology and novel orthokeratology lens use on myopia control efficacy in children.

Aims: The relationship between retinal electrophysiological function and myopia progression was evaluated in school-aged children wearing Breath-O-Correct Orthokeratology (OK) lenses compared with those wearing single vision (SV) lenses over 24 months.

Methods: In this randomised, single-blind, parallel controlled trial, children aged 8-12 years with -1.00 to -4.

Eccentricity Dependency of Retinal Electrophysiological Deficits in People With Episodic Migraine.

Purpose: During the non-attack period, people with migraine may show retinal dysfunction. This study builds on previous work by exploring the possibility of foveal and non-foveal visual field and electroretinographic deficits and determining the overlap in eccentricity of such localized visual deficits in people with migraine.

Methods: Visual fields and multifocal electroretinography (mf-ERG) were tested in 27 people with migraine (aged 19-45 years) and 18 non-headache controls (aged 20-46 years).

Patch-free streaming contrast-rebalanced dichoptic cartoons versus patching for treatment of amblyopia in children aged 3 to 5 years: a pilot, randomized clinical trial.

Background: We developed and tested a dichoptic treatment designed for younger children that can be viewed freely and involves a dichoptic manipulation of a popular animation series that enables contrast-rebalancing without disrupting fusion. Our aim was to assess whether this novel amblyopia treatment is superior to patching in children aged 3-5 years.

Methods: A total of 34 children with amblyopia were randomly assigned to contrast-rebalanced dichoptic cartoons (4 hours/week) or patching (14 hours/week) for 2 weeks.

Automated visual acuity estimation by optokinetic nystagmus using a stepped sweep stimulus.

Purpose: To describe an automatic system for objective measurement of visual acuity (VA) using optokinetic nystagmus (OKN). This pilot study tested the system's sensitivity and specificity for detecting reduced VA in healthy adults by comparing VA-OKN to VA with an Early Treatment of Diabetic Retinopathy Study (ETDRS) chart (VA-ETDRS).

Methods: Adult participants (age 30 ± 12 years) with either reduced VA (n = 11, VA-ETDRS > 0.