RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 Galectin-3: role in ocular allergy and potential as a predictive biomarker
JF British Journal of Ophthalmology
JO Br J Ophthalmol
FD BMJ Publishing Group Ltd.
SP 1003
OP 1010
DO 10.1136/bjophthalmol-2017-311473
VO 102
IS 7
A1 Frans Eberth Costa Andrade
A1 Mab Pereira Corrêa
A1 Alexandre Dantas Gimenes
A1 Myrna Serapião dos Santos
A1 Mauro Campos
A1 Roger Chammas
A1 José Álvaro Pereira Gomes
A1 Cristiane Damas Gil
YR 2018
UL http://bjo.bmj.com/content/102/7/1003.abstract
AB Aims To evaluate galectin-3 (Gal-3), a β-galactoside binding protein, as a possible biomarker in ocular allergy and further investigated the role of endogenous Gal-3 in a murine model of ovalbumin (OVA)-induced allergic conjunctivitis (AC).Methods Conjunctival impression cytology specimens from control and patients with severe vernal keratoconjunctivitis, treated or untreated, were used to evaluate Gal-3 expression by immunocytochemistry. To investigate the mechanism of action of Gal-3, OVA-immunised BALB/c male wild-type (WT) and Gal-3 null (Gal-3-/-) mice were challenged with eye drops containing OVA on days 14–16 with a subset of animals pretreated with 0.03% tacrolimus (TC) or dexamethasone (Dex).Results Patients with AC and OVA-sensitised WT mice exhibited increased levels of Gal-3 in the conjunctiva compared with control, an effect reverted by the action of Dex and TC therapy. Twenty-four hours after the final OVA challenge, total and anti-OVA IgE levels increased significantly in the blood of OVA-sensitised WT and Gal-3-/- mice compared with controls, supporting the efficacy of the AC model. The lack of endogenous Gal-3 exacerbated the local inflammatory response, increasing the influx of eosinophils and mast cell activation. Additionally, OVA-sensitised Gal-3-/- animals exhibited increased CD4+ expression in the eyes as well as eotaxin, IL-4, IL-13 and interferon-γ levels in the tear fluid compared with WT animals.Conclusion Gal-3 contributes to the pathogenesis of ocular allergy and represents a relevant therapeutic target.