Antimicrobial peptides at the ocular surface

• Applicant: Professor Dr. Friedrich Paulsen
• Subject Area: Ophthalmology
• Term: from 2006 to 2018
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 22483282

Meibomian gland dysfunction (MGD), a term used to describe a diffuse abnormality of the meibomian glands, which are specialized sebaceous glands in the eye lids, is considered to be the most common cause of dry eye syndrome (DES), a disease with an estimated prevalence of 12 million people alone in Germany. It is currently thought that MGD is caused primarily by terminal duct obstruction due to hyperkeratinization of the ductal epithelium and an increased viscosity of meibum. However, the molecular mechanisms that underlie this process are unclear. Many proteins being essential for epidermal differentiation and keratinization constitute the epidermal differentiation complex (EDC). They function beside epidermal differentiation and keratinization also in innate immune defense belonging to the group of antimicrobial peptides (AMP).The hypotheses are: Chronic inflammatory conditions at the ocular surface induce upregulation of AMPs which are correlated to genes of the EDC that function in epidermal differentiation and keratinization. Thus, induction of EDC associated AMPs triggers hyperkeratinization of meibomian glands and increases viscosity of meibum. The goal of the study is to get deeper insights into the pathophysiology of MGD by performing in vivo experiments in an established mouse model of dry eye and in vitro experiments using cultivated human meibomian gland epithelial cells in three-dimensional culture to determine factors that could serve as possible targets for therapeutic intervention in MGD.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants
• Participating Person: Privatdozent Dr. Fabian Garreis