Research of aquaporin 1 (AQP - 1) and pigment epithelium derived factor (PEDF) levels in lens anterior capsule material of cataract patients

Purpose: To evaluate the Pigment Epithelial Derived Factor (PEDF) and Aquaporin - 1 (AQP - 1) levels in the lens anterior capsule material taken during cataract operation of cataract patients and to investigate the differences between cataract types. Materials and Methods: Between June 2016 and October 2016, 90 eyes of 86 patients who underwent cataract surgery and underwent surgery in Atatürk University Ophthalmology outpatient clinic were included in the study. Sixty patients with senile cataract, 10 with uveitic cataract, 10 with traumatic cataract and 10 with congenital cataract were included in the study. There were nuclear cataracts in 40 senile cataract patients, 10 cortical cataracts in 10, and a posterior subcapsular cataract in 10. Pseudoexfoliation was present in 21 of the senile cataract patients. Of the patients with nuclear cataract, 3 had grade 1, 10 had grade 2, 19 had grade 3, and 8 had grade 4 nucleus stiffness. 11 patients with senile cataracts had diabetes mellitus, 7 patients had hypertension, 4 patients had degenerative myopia, 7 patients had maculardegeneration, 3 patients had glaucoma, and 2 patients had branch vein occlusion. PEDF and AQP - 1 levels were measured by the ELISA method in the lens anterior capsular material extracted by capsulorhexis in the classical phacoemulsification procedure and compared statistically with the One Way Anova tests among the groups. Results: In the senile cataract patient group, the PEDF level in the lens anterior capsule was 149,36 ± 17,46 pg / mL, 193,28 ± 5,74 pg / mL in the congenital cataract patient group,195,62 ± 3,08 pg / mL in the traumatic cataract patient group, in the uveitic cataract patients group, 193,93 ± 7,21 pg / mL. The difference between the PEDF levels in the lens anterior capsule of senile cataract patients and the other groups was statistically significant (p <0.001).Patients in the nuclear cataract group had a lower PEDF level than the patients with cortical and posterior subcapsular cataract, and this difference was statistically significant (p <0.001).There was no statistically significant difference in the distribution of PEDF levels in the lens anterior capsule between patients with cataract patients who had additional features that were known or postoperatively and cataract patients with no additional features and those with additional features (p> 0.05). In the patient group in which PES was detected, the PEDF level in the lens anterior capsule was lower than in the patient group without PES. The difference in PEDF level in the lens anterior capsule of patients with PES was statistically significant (p<0.001). In the senile cataract patient group, the AQP - 1 level in the lens anterior capsule was 75,12 ± 5,95 pg / mL, in the congenital cataract patient group 93,33 ± 6,59 pg / mL, in the traumatic cataract patient group 118,25 ± 40,23 pg / mL, and uveitic cataract patients were measured as 100,54 ± 5,10 pg / mL. The difference between the AQP - 1 levels in the lens anterior capsule of the senile cataract patients group and the traumatic cataract patients group was statistically significant (p <0.001). Patients in the nuclear cataract group had lower levels of AQP - 1 in the lens anterior capsular material than those with cortical and posterior subcapsular cataracts, and this difference was statistically significant (p <0.001). There was no statistically significant difference in the distribution of AQP - 1 levels between the cataract patients with additional features and cataract patients with no additional features, and those with additional features in the lens anterior capsule (p> 0.05). In the patient group in which PES was detected, the PEDF level in the lens anterior capsule was lower than in the patient group without PES. The difference in AQP - 1 level in the lens anterior capsule of patients with PES was statistically significant (p <0.001). Conclusion: PEDF and AQP - 1 may play a role in the pathogenesis of cataract; it has been concluded that alternative treatment modalities can be established. Key words: AQP - 1, cataract, lens anterior capsule, lens epithelial cell, PEDF