Attenuation of periostin in retinal Müller glia by TNF-α and IFN-γ

• Main Authors: Ying-Qian Peng, Man-Jing Cao, Shigeo Yoshida, Lu-Si Zhang, Hui-Lan Zeng, Jing-Ling Zou, Yoshiyuki Kobayashi, Takahito Nakama, Jing-Ming Shi, Song-Bai Jia, Ye-Di Zhou
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Press of International Journal of Ophthalmology (IJO PRESS) 2019-02-01
• Series: International Journal of Ophthalmology
• Subjects: tnf-α; ifn-γ; periostin; müller glia; retinal neovascularization
• Online Access: http://www.ijo.cn/en_publish/2019/2/20190205.pdf

AIM: To investigate the regulation and mechanisms of periostin expression in retinal Müller glia, and to explore the relevance to retinal neovascularization. METHODS: The oxygen-induced retinopathy (OIR) mouse model and the human Moorfield/Institute of Ophthalmology-Müller 1 (MIO-M1) cell line were used in the study. Immunofluorescence staining was used to determine the distribution and expression of periostin and a Müller glial cell marker glutamine synthetase (GS). Cytokines TNF-α and IFN-γ were added to stimulate the MIO-M1 cells. ShRNA was used to knockdown periostin expression in MIO-M1 cells. Quantitative real-time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) was conducted to assess the mRNA expression of periostin. RESULTS: Immunofluorescence staining showed that periostin was expressed by MIO-M1 Müller glia. GS-positive Müller glia and periostin increased in OIR retinas, and were partially overlaid. The stimulation of TNF-α and IFN-γ reduced the mRNA expression of periostin significantly and dose-dependently in MIO-M1 cells. Knockdown of periostin reduced mRNA expression of vascular endothelial growth factor A (VEGFA) in MIO-M1 cells, while VEGFA expression was not changed in periostin knock-out OIR retinas. CONCLUSION: Müller glia could be one of the main sources of periostin in the retina, and might contribute to the pathogenesis of retinal neovascularization. Proinflammatory cytokines TNF-α and IFN-γ attenuate the periostin expression in retinal Müller glia, which provides a potential and novel method in treating retinal neovascular diseases.