Preconditioning-induced retinal protection appears promising: a review

Abstract

Like human and animal myocardium and cerebral nervous tissue, the human and animal retina has powerful intrinsic adaptive mechanisms which can improve cell protection under adverse conditions. These endogenous protective mechanisms are capable of improving the resistance of retinal cells to adverse factors and can be triggered by brief episodes of different subthreshold stimuli (ischemia, photobiomodulation, hypothermia, etc.) preceding a subsequent more sustained injury, a process which is called preconditioning. Results of years of laboratory and clinical studies have demonstrated amazing cardiac protection and cerebral protection opportunities from preconditioning. Although the results of in vivo preclinical studies of retinal conditioning are promising, the benefits from the found effects of preconditioning on the protection of the human retina are still to be assessed. The overview presented highlights some aspects of the research and use of protective effects of preconditioning in various fields of medicine. The results of laboratory studies of endogenous mechanisms of retinal cell protection are discussed herein, along with our recommendations for prospective areas of future use of the effects in cinical ophthalmology for retinal protection.