title: Different alpha crystallin expression in human age-related and congenital cataract lens epithelium.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The purpose of this study was to investigate the different expressions of αA-crystallin and αB-crystallin in human lens epithelium of age-related and congenital cataracts.
  
  
  METHODS
  The central part of the human anterior lens capsule approximately 5 mm in diameter together with the adhering epithelial cells, were harvested and processed within 6 hours after cataract surgery from age-related and congenital cataract patients or from normal eyes of fresh cadavers. The mRNA and soluble protein levels of αA-crystallin and αB-crystallin in the human lens epithelium were detected by real-time PCR and western blots, respectively.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The mRNA and soluble protein expressions of αA-crystallin and αB-crystallin in the lens epithelium were both reduced in age-related and congenital cataract groups when compared with the normal control group. However, the degree of α-crystallin loss in the lens epithelium was highly correlated with different cataract types. The α-crystallin expression of the lens epithelium was greatly reduced in the congenital cataract group but only moderately decreased in the age-related cataract group. The reduction of αA-crystallin soluble protein levels in the congenital cataract group was approximately 2.4 fold decrease compared with that of the age-related cataract group, while an mRNA fold change of 1.67 decrease was observed for the age-related cataract group. Similarly, the reduction of soluble protein levels of αB-crystallin in the congenital cataract group was approximately a 1.57 fold change compared with that of the age-related cataract group. A 1.75 fold change for mRNA levels compared with that of the age-related cataract group was observed.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The results suggest that the differential loss of α-crystallin in the human lens epithelium could be associated with the different mechanisms of cataractogenesis in age-related versus congenital cataracts, subsequently resulting in different clinical presentations.
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Ophthalmology, Zhongshan Ophthalmic Center, Sun Yat-sen University, 54S Xianlie, Guangzhou, Guangdong, 510060, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Jing
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Ophthalmology, Zhongshan Ophthalmic Center, Sun Yat-sen University, 54S Xianlie, Guangzhou, Guangdong, 510060, People's Republic of China.|Department of ophthalmology, The First People's Hospital of Foshan, Guangdong Province, China.
authors.forename: Sheng
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Zhou
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology, Huichang County People's Hospital, Jiangxi, China.
authors.forename: Minfei
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Guo
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Ophthalmology, Zhongshan Ophthalmic Center, Sun Yat-sen University, 54S Xianlie, Guangzhou, Guangdong, 510060, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Yuting
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Ophthalmology, Zhongshan Ophthalmic Center, Sun Yat-sen University, 54S Xianlie, Guangzhou, Guangdong, 510060, People's Republic of China. gujj@mail.sysu.edu.cn.
authors.forename: Jianjun
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Gu
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D015153:Blotting, Western; D002386:Cataract / Q000151:congenital / Q000378:metabolism*; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004848:Epithelium / Q000378:metabolism; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007908:Lens, Crystalline / Q000378:metabolism*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000378:metabolism; D060888:Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction; D038201:alpha-Crystallins / Q000378:metabolism*; D038204:beta-Crystallins / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D012333:RNA, Messenger; D038201:alpha-Crystallins; D038204:beta-Crystallins
keywords: Age-related cataract; Alpha-crystallin; Congenital cataract; Lens epithelium