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Levels of photoreceptor proteins in macula correlated with AMD severity
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Levels of rhodopsin and arrestin in the macula were correlated with the severity of age-related macular degeneration in a study in cadaver eyes. The study authors said their findings may hold a key to understanding the pathobiochemistry of AMD.
In the study, Cheryl M. Ethen and colleagues at the University of Minnesota assigned donor eyes to specific levels of AMD severity using the Minnesota Grading System, a new system for assessing eye bank eyes. They then evaluated the expression of the rod photoreceptor proteins rhodopsin and arrestin in eyes at different levels of AMD severity.
A linear decline in both arrestin and rhodopsin content in the macula correlated with progressive levels of AMD. Samples from peripheral regions of the retina showed no significant correlation between AMD levels and the content of either protein.
The study is published in the March issue of Investigative Ophthalmology & Visual Science.