Possible Roles of Anti-type II Collagen Antibody and Innate Immunity in the Development and Progression of Diabetic Retinopathy

The pathogenesis of both diabetic retinopathy (DR) and rheumatoid arthritis (RA) has recently been considered to involve autoimmunity. Serum and synovial fluid levels of anti-type II collagen antibodies increase early after the onset of RA, thus inducing immune responses and subsequent hydrarthrosis and angiogenesis, which resemble diabetic macular edema and proliferative DR (PDR), respectively. We previously reported that DR is also associated with increased serum levels of anti-type II collagen antibodies. Retinal hypoxia in DR may induce pericytes to express type II collagen, resulting in autoantibody production against type II collagen. As the result of blood-retinal barrier disruption, anti-type II collagen antibodies in the serum come into contact with type II collagen around the retinal vessels. A continued loss of pericytes and type II collagen around the retinal vessels may result in a shift of the immune reaction site from the retina to the vitreous. It has been reported that anti-inflammatory M2 macrophages increased in the vitreous of PDR patients, accompanied by the activation of the NOD-like receptor family pyrin domain-containing 3 (NLRP3) inflammasome, a key regulator of innate immunity. M2 macrophages promote angiogenesis and fibrosis, which might be exacerbated and prolonged by dysregulated innate immunity.