[Exogenous advanced glycosylation end products induce diabetes-like vascular dysfunction in normal rats: a factor for occurrence of diabetic retinopathy].
OBJECTIVE
To disclose the relationship between the deposition of advanced glycosylation end products (AGE) in the retinal vascular tissues and damage of retinal vessels in diabetic retinopathy.


METHODS
Sixteen SD rats aged 2 months were divided into 4 groups, with 4 rats in each group. Rats in normal group received no treatment. Diabetes was induced by AGE in the diabetes group. Rat serum albumin (RSA, 40 mg/kg weight) was administered daily to healthy non-diabetic rats through tail veins for 2 weeks (RSA group). AGE-modified RSA was injected to rats in another group at the same route and dosage (AGE-RSA group). The number of pericytes in retinal capillary vessels was counted 2 weeks later.


RESULTS
After two weeks continuous AGE treatment, the average amount of pericytes of capillary vessel per 10 microscope visual field (x 100 magnification) in AGE group (4.31 +/- 0.34) was significantly less than that of RSA group (5.80 +/- 0.48) (P < 0.01). Meanwhile, in the AGE-RSA group, AGE were identified in the retinal vascular tissues by immunohistochemical staining.


CONCLUSIONS
Injection of exogenous AGE into healthy rats induces vascular changes resembling those find in the diabetic retinopathy. AGE might be one of the independent pathogenic factors in the occurrence of diabetic retinopathy.
Li
Zhi-ping
ZP
Department of Ophthalmology, Shanghai 1st People's Hospital, Shanghai 200080, China.
Xu
Xun
X
Huang
Yu-feng
YF
Zhu
Jian-feng
JF
Wang
Xiao-jue
XJ
Hu
Hong-hui
HH
He
Zhi-ping
ZP
D000818:Animals; D003921:Diabetes Mellitus, Experimental / Q000139:chemically induced; D003930:Diabetic Retinopathy / Q000139:chemically induced*; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D017127:Glycation End Products, Advanced / Q000009:adverse effects*; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D012171:Retinal Vessels / Q000187:drug effects*; D014652:Vascular Diseases / Q000139:chemically induced*
D017127:Glycation End Products, Advanced