Original articleVitreous levels of interleukin-6 and vascular endothelial growth factor are related to diabetic macular edema☆
Section snippets
Subjects
Undiluted vitreous fluid samples were harvested at the start of vitrectomy after informed consent was obtained from each subject following an explanation of the purpose and potential adverse effects of the procedure. This study was performed in accordance with the Helsinki Declaration of 1975 (the 1983 revision), and the Institutional Review Board of Tokyo Women's Medical University also approved the protocol for collection of vitreous fluid and blood samples. Vitreous fluid samples were
Vitreous levels of IL-6 and VEGF
Vitreous fluid protein levels (median [range]) were significantly higher in the diabetic subjects with DME than in the nondiabetic control subjects (3.12 mg/ml [0.55–8.42] vs. 0.55 mg/ml [0.21–2.42], P = 0.0008). The vitreous fluid concentration of VEGF was also significantly elevated in the subjects with DME (818.0 pg/ml [36.8–1902.4]) when compared with the control subjects (17.8 pg/ml [15.6–26.2], P<0.0001, Fig 1A). Furthermore, the VEGF/protein ratio showed a significant difference between
Discussion
In the present and previous studies,7, 8 we have shown that aqueous levels of both IL-6 and VEGF are correlated not only with the severity of diabetic retinopathy and the grade of fundus findings, such as retinal hemorrhages and hard exudates, but also with the severity of DME. We have also shown that the aqueous level of IL-6 is significantly correlated with that of VEGF.7, 8 Furthermore, both VEGF and IL-6 concentrations are higher in the aqueous humor than in the plasma.7, 8 Although it has
Acknowledgements
We thank Drs Shigehiko Kitano, Erika Shimizu, Hidetaka Noma, Yuichiro Nakanishi, Koji Makita, Kensuke Haruyama, and Shinko Nakamura for their assistance in collecting the vitreous and plasma samples and in performing the ophthalmological examinations. We also thank Drs Yasuhiko Iwamoto and Naoko Iwasaki for their assistance in performing the internal medical examinations. Finally, we would like to thank Katsunori Shimada (Department of Biostatistics, STATZ Institute Co., Ltd.) for his
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Manuscript no. 220444.
Supported by a Health Science Research Grant (#10060101 to Drs Funatsu, Hori, and Yamashita) from the Japanese Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare (Tokyo, Japan).