Pericytes, inflammation, and diabetic retinopathy

Benjamin G. Spencer, Jose J. Estevez, Ebony Liu, Jamie E. Craig, John W. Finnie

    Research output: Contribution to journalReview articlepeer-review

    77 Citations (Scopus)

    Abstract

    Diabetic retinopathy (DR) is a frequent complication of diabetes mellitus, and a common cause of vision impairment and blindness in these patients, yet many aspects of its pathogenesis remain unresolved. Furthermore, current treatments are not effective in all patients, are only indicated in advanced disease, and are associated with significant adverse effects. This review describes the microvascular features of DR, and how pericyte depletion and low-grade chronic inflammation contribute to the pathogenesis of this common ophthalmic disorder. Existing, novel and investigational pharmacological strategies aimed at modulating the inflammatory component of DR and ameliorating pericyte loss to potentially improve clinical outcomes for patients with diabetic retinopathy, are discussed.

    Original languageEnglish
    Pages (from-to)697-709
    Number of pages13
    JournalINFLAMMOPHARMACOLOGY
    Volume28
    Issue number3
    Early online date5 Dec 2019
    DOIs
    Publication statusPublished - 1 Jun 2020

    Keywords

    • Diabetic retinopathy
    • Inflammation
    • Pericytes
    • Retina

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