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Pathogenesis of glaucoma: does light play a part in the process?
Author(s) -
OSBORNE N
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
acta ophthalmologica
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.534
H-Index - 87
eISSN - 1755-3768
pISSN - 1755-375X
DOI - 10.1111/j.1755-3768.2012.3452.x
Subject(s) - optic nerve , retina , neuroscience , ganglion , axon , intrinsically photosensitive retinal ganglion cells , glaucoma , mitochondrion , retinal ganglion cell , giant retinal ganglion cells , biology , microglia , anatomy , microbiology and biotechnology , inflammation , immunology
Pathogenesis of glaucoma: does light play a part in the process? By: Neville N. Osborne Fundación de Investigación Oftalmológica, Instituto Oftalmológico Fernández‐Vega, Oviedo 33012, Spain. Neurones are absolutely dependent on their mitochondria for their energy needs unlike dividing non‐neuronal glial cells. Retinal ganglion neurones are particularly dependent on their mitochondria because a lot of energy is required to propagate the action potential along the non‐mylinated axons within the globe. We have propose that glaucoma is initiated by an alteration in the blood flow dynamics in the optic nerve head causing a defined “ischemic‐like” insult to the retinal ganglion neurone axon mitochondria and also surrounding astrocytes and microglia. While this results in ganglion cells being metabolically weaker, but still functionally normally, they are now susceptible to secondary insults that they would have normally tolerated. The major secondary insults to subsequently result in ganglion cells dying at different times probably arise from chemicals released from activated optic nerve head astrocytes and microglia. Yet another factor may be the very same light that is involved in vision. This is because basic science studies have shown that light as impinging on ganglion cell axons can affect mitochondrial function. Thus while it is not suggested that light causes glaucoma it is proposed that particularly the blue light component impinging on the retina can exacerbate already metabolically effected ganglion cell mitochondria.