Vitamin D and vitamin D receptor in patients with ophthalmic pterygium

European Journal of Histochemistry : EJH
Cristina MaxiaMaria Teresa Perra

Abstract

Pterygium, an ultraviolet radiation (UV)-related disease, is a relatively benign process, but since it displays tumor-like features, it has been proposed to be a neoplastic- like growth disorder. Vitamin D performs a number of functions in addition to calcium homeostasis, as inhibition of cell proliferation, activation of apoptotic pathways, and inhibition of angiogenesis. Since the antitumor actions of vitamin D are mediated primarily through the nuclear vitamin D receptor (VDR), the aim of the present study was to investigate vitamin D status in patients with pterygium and in control subjects, and VDR immunohistochemical expression in samples of pterygium and normal conjunctiva in order to evaluate a possible role of vitamin D pathway in the pathogenesis of the disease. Serum vitamin D concentration was measured among 41 patients with pterygium and 47 volunteers by an automated chemiluminescence immunoassay. Moreover, 23 formalin- fixed and paraffin-embedded pterygium biopsy samples and 24 conjunctiva specimens were treated for the immunohistochemical demonstration of VDR using the streptavidin-biotin alkaline phosphatase method. No differences were observed about vitamin D level between patient with pterygium and control gro...Continue Reading

Methods Mentioned

BETA
biopsy

Software Mentioned

Adobe Photoshop

Related Concepts

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Apoptosis

Apoptosis is a specific process that leads to programmed cell death through the activation of an evolutionary conserved intracellular pathway leading to pathognomic cellular changes distinct from cellular necrosis

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