title: Nerve growth factor effect on human primary fibroblastic-keratocytes: possible mechanism during corneal healing.
abstract: In response to corneal injury, cytokines and growth factors play a crucial role by influencing epithelial-stromal interaction during the healing and reparative processes which may resolve in tissue remodeling and fibrosis. While transforming growth factor-beta1 (TGF-beta1) is considered the main profibrogenic modulator of these process, recently the nerve growth factor (NGF) appears as a pleiotropic modulator of wound-healing and inflammatory responses. Interestingly in the cornea, where NGF, trkA(NGFR) and p75(NTR) are expressed by epithelial cells and keratocytes, the NGF eye-drop induces the healing of neurotrophic or autoimmune corneal ulcers. During corneal healing, quiescent keratocytes are replaced by active fibroblast-like keratocytes/myofibroblasts. While the NGF effect on epithelial cells has been investigated, no data are reported for NGF effects on fibroblastic-keratocytes, during corneal healing. NGF, trkA(NGFR) and p75(NTR) were found expressed by fibroblastic-keratocytes. NGF was able to induce fibroblastic-keratocyte differentiation into myofibroblasts, migration, Metalloproteinase-9 expression/activity and contraction of a 3D collagen gel, without affecting their proliferation and collagen production. These data also show a two-directional control of fibroblastic-keratocytes by NGF and TGF-beta1. To sum up, the findings of this study indicate that NGF can modulate some functional activities of fibroblastic-keratocytes, thus substantiating the healing effects of NGF on corneal wound-healing.
authors.affiliation: CIR Laboratory of Ophthalmology, University Campus Bio-Medico and G.B.Bietti, Foundation, Via Emilio Longoni 83, 00155 Rome, Italy.
authors.forename: Alessandra
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Micera
authors.forename: Alessandro
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Lambiase
authors.forename: Ilaria
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Puxeddu
authors.forename: Luigi
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Aloe
authors.forename: Barbara
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Stampachiacchiere
authors.forename: Francesca
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Levi-Schaffer
authors.forename: Sergio
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Bonini
authors.forename: Stefano
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Bonini
mesh_terms: D002454:Cell Differentiation / Q000187:drug effects; D002465:Cell Movement / Q000187:drug effects; D049109:Cell Proliferation / Q000187:drug effects; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D003315:Cornea / Q000166:cytology / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000502:physiology; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D005347:Fibroblasts / Q000166:cytology / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D020932:Nerve Growth Factor / Q000378:metabolism / Q000494:pharmacology*; D020800:Receptor, Nerve Growth Factor / Q000378:metabolism; D020917:Receptor, trkA / Q000378:metabolism; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction / Q000379:methods; D014945:Wound Healing / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000502:physiology
chemical_list: D020800:Receptor, Nerve Growth Factor; D020932:Nerve Growth Factor; D020917:Receptor, trkA