Immune Regulation in the Aging Retina

Overview

Journal Prog Retin Eye Res

Specialty Ophthalmology

Date 2018 Oct 24

PMID 30352305

Citations 117

Authors

Mei Chen

Chang Luo

Jiawu Zhao

Gayathri Devarajan

Heping Xu

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

The retina is an immune privileged tissue, which is protected from external and internal insults by its blood-retina barriers and immune suppressive microenvironment. Apart from the avoidance and tolerance strategies, the retina is also protected by its own defense system, i.e., microglia and the complement system. The immune privilege and defense mechanisms work together to maintain retinal homeostasis. During aging, the retina is at an increased risk of developing various degenerative diseases such as age-related macular degeneration, diabetic retinopathy, and glaucomatous retinopathy. Previously, we have shown that aging induces a para-inflammatory response in the retina. In this review, we explore the impact of aging on retinal immune regulation and the connection between homeostatic control of retinal immune privilege and para-inflammation under aging conditions and present a view that may explain why aging puts the retina at risk of developing degenerative diseases.

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