Open AccessRetina Metabolism and Metabolism in the Pigmented Epithelium: A Busy Intersection
Author(s) -
James B. Hurley
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
annual review of vision science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 3.984
H-Index - 26
eISSN - 2374-4650
pISSN - 2374-4642
DOI - 10.1146/annurev-vision-100419-115156
Subject(s) - retina , choroid , retinal pigment epithelium , biology , retinal , epithelium , metabolism , energy metabolism , sclera , microbiology and biotechnology , anatomy , neuroscience , biochemistry , endocrinology , genetics
The outer retina is nourished from the choroid, a capillary bed just inside the sclera. O 2 , glucose, and other nutrients diffuse out of the choroid and then filter through a monolayer of retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) cells to fuel the retina. Recent studies of energy metabolism have revealed striking differences between retinas and RPE cells in the ways that they extract energy from fuels. The purpose of this review is to suggest and evaluate the hypothesis that the retina and RPE have complementary metabolic roles that make them depend on each other for survival and for their abilities to perform essential and specialized functions.