NPD1 reduced severity of HSV keratitis

Knoxville – mechentel news – Neuroprotectin D1 (NPD1) is an anti-inflammatory and proresolving lipid mediator biosynthesized from the omega-3-polyunsaturated fatty acid docosahexaenoic acid (DHA). NPD1 treatment could represent a valuable therapeutic approach to control SK lesions as the autors assert in the issue of septenber of Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci. The purpose of this study is to test the therapeutic potential of NPD1 for the treatment of herpes simplex virus (HSV)-induced stromal keratitis (SK) using a mouse model. C57BL/6 mice were infected ocularly with HSV-1 strain RE. Infected animals were treated topically with methyl ester prodrug NPD1 (300 ng/eye, 5-μL drop). Development of SK lesions, infiltration of inflammatory cells into the cornea, and production of proinflammatory cytokines, chemokines, and angiogenic factors were compared to untreated animals using slit-lamp biomicroscopy, flow cytometry, ELISA, and quantitative PCR (qPCR). N.K.Rajasagi et al. from Biomedical & Diagnostic Sciences, College of Veterinary Medicine, The University of Tennessee, Knoxville, Tennessee, USA, found that Topical administration of NPD1 resulted in a significant reduction in the severity and incidence of SK, as well as the extent of corneal neovascularization in the NPD1-treated animals compared to their untreated co unterparts. Infiltration of fewer neutrophils and pathogenic CD4(+) T cells into the cornea, along with a lower number of cells that could be induced ex vivo to produce IFN-γ and IL-17, occurred with NPD1 treatment. Additionally, treatment with NPD1 diminished the production of proinflammatory cytokines, chemokines, and angiogenic factors, such as IL-6, CXCL1, CXCL-10, CCL-20, VEGF-A, MMP-2, and MMP-9 in the corneas of infected animals. Importantly, treatment with NPD1 increased the production of the anti-inflammatory cytokine, IL-10.

 Autoren: Rajasagi NK, Reddy PB, Mulik S, Gjorstrup P, Rouse BT. Korrespondenz: Biomedical & Diagnostic Sciences, College of Veterinary Medicine, The University of Tennessee, Knoxville, Tennessee. Studie: Neuroprotectin D1 Reduces the Severity of Herpes Simplex Virus–Induced Corneal Immunopathology. Quelle: Investigative Ophthalmology & Visual Science, 2013 Sep 17;54(9):6269-79. doi: 10.1167/iovs.13-12152. http://www.iovs.org/content/54/9/6269.long