Characterization of glucocorticoid receptor on lymphocytes in Chinese patients with glucocorticoid-induced glaucoma

We studied the pathogenesis of glucocorticoid-induced glucoma (GIG) through characterization of glucocorticoid receptor (GR) on lymphocytes in Chinese patients with GIG.

By radioligand receptor binding followed by Scatchard analysis, the specific binding sites were characterized and quantitated for glucocorticoid receptors on peripheral blood lymphocytes obtained from patients with GIG and the control group.

The binding sites we detected were as follows: 12.7 +/- 1.47 x 10(3) receptors per cell with a KD of 3.02 +/- 0.62 nmol/L in patients with GIG, 7.26 +/- 0.45 x 10(3) receptors per cell with a KD of 3.03 +/- 0.56 nmol/L in the control group. The statistical difference of receptors per cell is significant between two groups (p < 0.05), patients with GIG having more GR binding sites, while the difference of Kd is not significant (p > 0.05).

The preliminary findings suggest that patients with GIG are more sensitive to glucocorticoid and the increase of binding sites of GR may be the receptor and molecular basis of the pathogenesis of GIG.