PMID: 11923240Mar 30, 2002Paper

Decreased levels of the goblet cell mucin MUC5AC in tears of patients with Sjögren syndrome

Investigative Ophthalmology & Visual Science
Pablo ArgüesoIlene K Gipson

Abstract

To determine whether the relative amounts of mucin mRNA in the conjunctival epithelium and mucin protein in the tears are altered in patients with Sjögren syndrome compared with healthy individuals. Tear fluid was collected from the inferior fornix of normal subjects (n = 17) and patients with Sjögren syndrome (n = 11) after instillation of 60 microL sterile water onto the ocular surface. Immediately after tear fluid collection, conjunctival epithelium was obtained by filter paper-stripping from the bulbar temporal region for mRNA isolation. Primers to nontandem repeat sequences of the gel-forming mucin MUC5AC and the membrane-spanning mucins MUC1 and MUC4 were used in real-time RT-PCR to determine relative abundance of MUC mRNA in patients with Sjögren syndrome in relation to that of normal subjects. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay was performed on neuraminidase-treated tears, using a polyclonal antibody against a synthetic peptide mimicking the deduced amino acid sequence from the D3 region of MUC5AC. The number of RNA transcripts for the goblet cell-specific mucin MUC5AC in the conjunctival epithelium of patients with Sjögren syndrome was significantly lower than in normal individuals. No significant changes were detected ...Continue Reading

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