Regenerates the optic nerve to cure glaucoma

Glaucoma is the leading cause of blindness in the world. Currently available treatments stabilize the disease, but no one can cure it. Researchers at the University of Cambridge are investigating a potential therapeutic route. In Nature Communications, explain their hypothesis: the gene that produces the Protrudin protein can stimulate the regeneration of nerve cells and prevent them from dying if damaged.

A verified hypothesis

The first phase of their research took place in the Petri dishes. Scientists cultivated brain cells and then deliberately degraded their axons, the nerve fibers. These are not normally able to regenerate after an injury or illness. For this reason the pathologies that affect them are generally irreversible. The researchers then increased the amount of protrudin in the nerve cells. The experiment confirms their hypothesis: the regeneration capacity of nerve cells is significantly increased. In a second experiment, they tested Protrudin’s effect after several weeks: it allowed the axons to massively regenerate and the cells were not dead.

Confirmed results in mice

For the research team, these results show that the technique could be used in the treatment of glaucoma. To confirm them, they performed an experiment on the eyes of mice. They took the retinas and introduced the Protrudin protein. Normally, without retina, neurons die within a few days, but in this experiment the addition of the protein protected them.

More research will be needed

Researchers would like to use gene therapy to release Protrudin into the eye. “Importantly, these findings require further research to see if they can be translated into effective treatments in humans. “, says Dr. Veselina Petrova, lead author of the study. Remember that results from optic nerve studies often apply to the spinal cord as well. Perhaps Protrudin could also be used to repair the damaged spinal cord.