ObjectiveTo observe the inhibitory effect of berberine (BBR) on the apoptosis of human retinal vascular endothelial cells (hREC) under high glucose environment.MethodshREC was divided into blank control group (NC group), high glucose group (HG group), BBR treatment group (BN group), and BBR+high glucose treatment group (BH group). The cells of each group were cultured in Dulbecco's modified eagle medium; 5.5 and 30.0 mmol/L glucose were added to the medium of the NC group and HG group, respectively; 5.0 mmol/L glucose and 5.0 mmol/L BBR was added to the BN group; 30.0 mmol/L glucose and 5.0 mmol/L BBR was added to the medium of the BH group. Flow cytometry was used to observe the apoptosis rate of each group. Western blotting was used to detect the relative expression levels of B-cell lymphoma-2 (Bcl-2), Bcl-2 related X protein (Bax), and Cytochrome C (Cyt-C) and cysteine aspastic acid-specific protease 3 (Caspase-3) proteins in each group of cells. The difference between the two groups was tested by t test, and the difference among multiple groups was analyzed by one-way analysis of variance. ResultsThe results of flow cytometry showed that compared with the NC group, the apoptosis rate of the HG group significantly increased, and the difference was statistically significant (P＜0.01); compared with the HG group, the apoptosis rate of the BH group significantly reduced, the difference was statistical significance (P＜0.05). Western blot test results showed that, compared with the NC group, the relative expression of Bax and Caspase-3 protein in the HG group increased, and the relative expression of Bcl-2 protein decreased. The difference was statistically significant (P＜0.01). Compared with the HG group, the relative expression of Bax, Cyt-C, and Caspase-3 protein in BH group cells decreased, and the relative expression of Bcl-2 protein increased, and the difference was statistically significant (P＜0.01). ConclusionBBR can inhibit hREC apoptosis by affecting the expression of apoptotic protein under high glucose environment.
ObjectiveTo investigate the incidence and influencing factors of optic disc changes in children and adolescents with high myopia. MethodsA clinical cross-sectional study. A total of 162 children and adolescents with high myopia (162 eyes) who visited Department of Ophthalmology, Northern Jiangsu People's Hospital Affiliated to Yangzhou University from January to April 2025 were included in this study. Myopia refractive error ≥ 6.00 D and/or axial length (AL) ≥26 mm. All participants underwent best-corrected visual acuity, refraction, fundus color photography, swept-source optical coherence tomography (SS-OCT), and AL measurement. Subfoveal choroidal thickness (ChT) was measured within 1 mm using SS-OCT. Optic disc changes assessed included tilt, rotation, peripapillary atrophy (PPA), and peripapillary hyperreflective ovoid mass-like structures (PHOMS). The patients were divided into the children group (4-11 years old) and the adolescents group (12-18 years old) based on age, with 63 (38.9%, 63/162) and 99 (61.1%, 99/162) cases respectively. The incidence of ocular features and optic disc morphology changes in the two groups was compared and observed. According to the myopia diopter, the patients were divided into the high diopter long axial group (myopia diopter ≥ 6.00 D, AL≥26 mm) and the low diopter long axial group (myopia diopter ＜6.00 D, AL≥26 mm), with 85 (52.5%, 85/162) and 77 (47.5%, 77/162) eyes respectively. The incidence of optic disc morphological changes in the two groups was compared and observed. The comparison of quantitative data between groups was conducted using the Mann-Whitney U test. Multivariate logistic regression was used to analyze the correlations between PPA, optic disc tilt, PHOMS occurrence and gender, age, diopter, AL, and ChT. ResultsAmong the 162 patients, 103 were male and 59 were female. Age was 12 (10.5, 13.5) years old. Among the 162 eyes, the optic disc morphology changed in 152 eyes (93.8%, 152/162). Among them, the PPA, optic disc tilt, PHOMS, and optic disc rotation were 148 (91.4%, 148/162), 95 (58.6%, 95/162), 62 (38.3%, 62/162), and 35 (21.6%) eyes respectively. Myopic macular degeneration in 137 eyes. There were 56 eyes with peripheral retinopathy. There was no statistically significant difference in myopia diopter, AL and ChT between the children group and the adolescent group (Z=−1.201, −1.934, −0.761; P=0.230, 0.053, 0.447). There was no statistically significant difference in the incidences of PPA, optic disc tilt and optic disc rotation (χ2=0.293, 2.618, 0.398; P > 0.05). There was no statistically significant difference in the incidence of optic disc morphological changes between the low diopter long axial group and the high diopter long axial group (χ2=0.000, P > 0.05). The results of multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that the thinner the ChT, the higher the risk of PPA [odds ratio (OR) =0.98, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.97-0.99, P ＜0.001]. Female (OR=2.3, 95%CI 1.04-5.07, P=0.039), older age (OR=1.17, 95%CI 1.01-1.37, P=0.043), thinner ChT (OR=0.99, 95%CI 0.99-1.00, P=0.012), the higher the risk of optic disc tilt. The older the age, the higher the risk of developing PHOMS (OR=1.22, 95%CI 1.06-1.40, P=0.006). ConclusionOptic disc morphology changes may be the most common fundus alterations in children and adolescents with high myopia.