Effects of Lutein on Hyperosmoticity-Induced Upregulation of IL-6 in Cultured Corneal Epithelial Cells and Its Relevant Signal Pathways.

Shih-Chun Chao,Dan-Ning Hu,Chan-Wei Nien,Sheng-Chieh Huang,Hung-Yu Lin,Codrin Iacob

doi:10.1155/2016/8341439

Abstract

Dry eye is a common disorder characterized by deficiency of tear. Hyperosmoticity of tear stimulates inflammation and damage of ocular surface tissues and plays an essential role in the pathogenesis of dry eye. Cultured human corneal epithelial (CE) cells were used for the study of effects of lutein and hyperosmoticity on the secretion of IL-6 by CE cells. Cell viability of CE cells was not affected by lutein at 1–10 μM as determined by MTT assay. Hyperosmoticity significantly elevated the secretion of IL-6 by CE cells as measured by ELISA analysis. The constitutive secretion of IL-6 was not affected by lutein. Lutein significantly and dose-dependently inhibited hyperosmoticity-induced secretion of IL-6. Phosphorylated- (p)- p38 MAPK, p-JNK levels in cell lysates and NF-κB levels in cell nuclear extracts were increased by being exposed to hyperosmotic medium. JNK, p38, and NF-κB inhibitors decreased hyperosmoticity-induced secretion of IL-6. Lutein significantly inhibited hyperosmoticity-induced elevation of NF-κB, p38, and p-JNK levels. We demonstrated that lutein inhibited hyperosmoticity-induced secretion of IL-6 in CE cells through the deactivation of p38, JNK, and NF-κB pathways. Lutein may be a promising agent to be explored for the treatment of dry eye.

Highlights

Dry eye is a multifactorial disorder of the ocular surface characterized by symptoms of ocular discomfort and visual disturbance and is associated with reductions in the quality and/or quantity of tears
Cell viability of cultured human corneal epithelial (CE) cells was not affected by lutein at 1, 3, and 10 μM as compared to cells cultured without lutein (P > 0.05) (Figure 1)
CE cells cultured in isoosmotic medium showed a constitutive secretion of IL-6 at 42.3 ± 4.7 ng/mL

Summary

Introduction

Dry eye is a multifactorial disorder of the ocular surface characterized by symptoms of ocular discomfort and visual disturbance and is associated with reductions in the quality and/or quantity of tears. Dry eye is a common disease and the prevalence of dry eye ranges from 5 to 33% of the adult population. The prevalence of dry eye increases with age and is more common in women. It can lead to significant functional impairment in daily life and affects quality of life and productivity. A substantial economic burden to the patients and society is derived owing to associated health care costs and loss of productivity of affected individuals [1,2,3,4,5,6,7]

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