Vitreous fluid levels of β-amyloid_(1–42) and tau in patients with retinal diseases

Abstract

Purpose

A decrease in β-amyloid_1–42 (Aβ42) and an increase in tau in the cerebrospinal fluid are reported to be characteristic phenomena in Alzheimer’s disease patients. To test the idea that Aβ42 and tau contribute to the development of retinal diseases, we measured Aβ42 and tau concentrations in the vitreous fluid from patients with macular hole (n = 13), diabetic retinopathy (n = 15), or glaucoma concurrent with other ocular diseases (n = 8).

Methods

Vitreous samples were collected from patients who underwent vitrectomy, and sensitive and specific enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays were used to determine the concentrations of Aβ42 and tau.

Results

By comparison with the levels in the control macular-hole patients (33.9 ± 7.1 pg/ml for Aβ42; 3.3 ± 3.2 pg/ml for tau), there was a significant decrease in the Aβ42 level and a significant increase in the tau level in patients with diabetic retinopathy (1.8 ± 1.9 pg/ml for Aβ42, P = 0.002; 153.7 ± 71.6 pg/ml for tau, P = 0.041) or glaucoma concurrent with other ocular diseases (2.8 ± 1.8 pg/ml for Aβ42, P = 0.006; 113.6 ± 43.1 pg/ml for tau, P = 0.023).

Conclusions

Our findings indicate the possibility of a role for Aβ42 and tau in the pathogenesis of some retinal diseases.