Diabetic retinopathy (DR) is the leading cause of blindness in working-age adults in industrialized countries, and its effects on public health will become even greater because of the rising incidence of diabetes world- wide. Visual impairment in diabetic retinopathy results from two causes: increased retinal vascular permeability (which leads to diabetic macular edema) and capillary drop-out (which leads to retinal ischemia/hypoxia and the subsequent development of retinal neovascularization). Diabetes creates oxidative stress and pro-inflammatory changes in the retina, which are critical for the pathogenesis of diabetic retinopathy. As a result, the regulation of these processes is important for the progression of DR. The transcription factor Nrf2 has an important cytoprotective role against oxidative stress and inflammation in multiple disease processes. Nrf2 is quite amenable to pharmacologic modulation, so its protective effects can be augmented. Our lab has been studying the role of Nrf2 in the retina. We have found that the Nrf2 system plays a vital protective role in the retinal response to ischemia-reperfusion injury. Furthermore, we have preliminary evidence that Nrf2 plays an important role in diabetic retinopathy. We hypothesize that Nrf2 is an important protective mechanism regulating oxidative stress and pro-inflammatory changes in the retina in diabetes. We further hypothesize that Nrf2 regulates vascular permeability and capillary dropout in diabetic retinopathy and propose the following 3 aims:
Specific Aim 1. Determine the role of Nrf2 in the regulation of oxidative stress and pro-inflammatory processes in a diabetic mouse model.
Specific Aim 2. Determine the role of Nrf2 on vascular permeability and capillary drop-out in a diabetic mouse model.
Specific Aim 3. Determine if pharmacologic activation of Nrf2 protects against pathophysiologic and functional changes in diabetic retinopathy. We anticipate that these aims will allow us to implicate Nrf2 as an important protective mechanism in diabetic retinopathy and provide a new therapeutic strategy for this sight-threatening condition.

Public Health Relevance

Diabetic retinopathy (DR) is the leading cause of blindness in working-age adults in industrialized countries, and its effects on public health will become even greater because of the rising incidence of diabetes world- wide. This research will allow us to determine the role of the protective molecule Nrf2 in regulating diabetic retinopathy. This could allow us to develop a new therapy for this sight-threatening condition, aimed at augmenting the protective effect of Nrf2.

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Eye Institute (NEI)
Type
Research Project (R01)
Project #
5R01EY022383-03
Application #
8656121
Study Section
Biology and Diseases of the Posterior Eye (BDPE)
Program Officer
Shen, Grace L
Project Start
2012-05-01
Project End
2015-04-30
Budget Start
2014-07-01
Budget End
2015-04-30
Support Year
3
Fiscal Year
2014
Total Cost
Indirect Cost
Name
Johns Hopkins University
Department
Ophthalmology
Type
Schools of Medicine
DUNS #
City
Baltimore
State
MD
Country
United States
Zip Code
21218
Chen, Wan-Ju; Wu, Caiying; Xu, Zhenhua et al. (2017) Nrf2 protects photoreceptor cells from photo-oxidative stress induced by blue light. Exp Eye Res 154:151-158
Duh, Elia J; Sun, Jennifer K; Stitt, Alan W (2017) Diabetic retinopathy: current understanding, mechanisms, and treatment strategies. JCI Insight 2:
Wei, Yanhong; Gong, Junsong; Xu, Zhenhua et al. (2016) Nrf2 promotes reparative angiogenesis through regulation of NADPH oxidase-2 in oxygen-induced retinopathy. Free Radic Biol Med 99:234-243
Shen, Yu-I; Cho, Hongkwan; Papa, Arianne E et al. (2016) Engineered human vascularized constructs accelerate diabetic wound healing. Biomaterials 102:107-19
Hartsock, Matthew J; Cho, Hongkwan; Wu, Lijuan et al. (2016) A Mouse Model of Retinal Ischemia-Reperfusion Injury Through Elevation of Intraocular Pressure. J Vis Exp :
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Wei, Yanhong; Gong, Junsong; Xu, Zhenhua et al. (2015) Nrf2 in ischemic neurons promotes retinal vascular regeneration through regulation of semaphorin 6A. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 112:E6927-36
Cho, Hongkwan; Hartsock, Matthew J; Xu, Zhenhua et al. (2015) Monomethyl fumarate promotes Nrf2-dependent neuroprotection in retinal ischemia-reperfusion. J Neuroinflammation 12:239
Xu, Zhenhua; Yoshida, Takeshi; Wu, Lijuan et al. (2015) Transcription factor MEF2C suppresses endothelial cell inflammation via regulation of NF-?B and KLF2. J Cell Physiol 230:1310-20
Xu, Zhenhua; Cho, Hongkwan; Hartsock, Matthew J et al. (2015) Neuroprotective role of Nrf2 for retinal ganglion cells in ischemia-reperfusion. J Neurochem 133:233-41

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