title: Expression of hepatocyte growth factor and its receptor c-Met in lens-induced myopia in guinea pigs.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Myopia is a common disorder and the incidence has increased yearly, but its pathogenesis remains unclear. The aim of this study was to investigate the possible role of hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) and its receptor c-Met in the development of lens-induced myopia in guinea pigs.
  
  
  METHODS
  Sixty one-week-old guinea pigs were chosen. The right eyes were treated with -10.0 diopters (D) lenses as the lens-induced myopia group; the left eyes remained untreated as the control group. Six weeks later, refractive status and axial length were determined by streak retinoscopy and A-scan ultrasonography, respectively. The guinea pigs were killed and both eyes collected. Morphological changes were observed by hematoxylin and eosin staining. The expression levels of HGF, c-Met, and matrix metalloproteinase 2 (MMP-2) mRNA and protein in the posterior sclera were analyzed by RT-PCR and Western blotting, respectively.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The lens-induced myopia group became myopic with a significant increase in axial length and a significant decrease in refraction. Compared with the control group, the posterior retina and sclera were thinner in the lens-induced myopia group. The expression levels of HGF and MMP-2 mRNA and protein and of phosphorylated c-Met protein were significantly higher in the posterior sclera of the lens-induced myopia group than in the control group (all P < 0.05). In the lens-induced myopia group, the expression level of MMP-2 in the posterior sclera positively correlated with the expression level of HGF (r = 0.902, P < 0.05) and phosphorylated c-Met (r = 0.885, P < 0.05).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  HGF/c-Met might play a role in the development of lens-induced myopia in guinea pigs by upregulating the expression of MMP-2.
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology, the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, Henan 450052, China.
authors.forename: Xiu-juan
authors.initials: XJ
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Xiao-peng
authors.initials: XP
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.forename: Guang-ming
authors.initials: GM
authors.lastname: Wan
authors.forename: Yu-ying
authors.initials: YY
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Jin-song
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Zhang
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D006168:Guinea Pigs; D017228:Hepatocyte Growth Factor / Q000378:metabolism*; D009216:Myopia / Q000209:etiology / Q000378:metabolism*; D019859:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-met / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D017228:Hepatocyte Growth Factor; D019859:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-met