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Updated: Mar 21, 2026
Detection of Functional Matrix Metalloproteinases by Zymography
Published on: November 8, 2010
Tear Matrix Metalloproteinases and Myeloperoxidase Levels in Patients With Boston Keratoprosthesis Type I
Marie-Claude Robert1, Samer N Arafat, Sandra Spurr-Michaud
1*Department of Ophthalmology, Schepens Eye Research Institute, Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA; †Department of Ophthalmology, Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA; and ‡Department of Ophthalmology, Centre Hospitalier de l'Université de Montréal, Université de Montréal, Montréal, QC, Canada.
Purpose:
To investigate the tear levels of matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs), myeloperoxidase (MPO), and tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinase-1 in eyes after Boston keratoprosthesis type I (B-KPro) implantation and to correlate these markers with the established B-KPro prognostic categories.
Methods:
Tear washes were collected from 40 patients (7 with autoimmune disease, 2 with chemical burn, and 31 with other noncicatrizing diagnoses). Tear levels of MMPs, MPO, and tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinase-1 were quantified using multianalyte bead-based enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays. The total MMP activity was determined using a fluorimetric assay. The analytes were compared to the underlying diagnosis and other clinical factors.
Results:
The MMP-8, MMP-9, and MPO levels were markedly elevated in the eyes with B-KPro (80 ± 31, 291 ± 77, and 244 ± 33 pg/μg, respectively). Chemical burn was associated with significantly higher tear MMP-8 (474 ± 376 pg/μg) and MMP-9 levels (1300 ± 635 pg/μg) compared with noncicatrizing diseases (MMP-8: 41 ± 15 pg/μg, P = 0.02 and MMP-9: 196 ± 57 pg/μg, P = 0.02) and higher MMP-9 levels compared with autoimmune diseases (MMP-8: 96 ± 65 pg/μg, P = 0.21 and MMP-9: 306 ± 196 pg/μg, P = 0.04). Similar analyte levels were observed in the B-KPro eye and the contralateral non-B-KPro eye of patients with bilateral diseases. MMP-8, MMP-9, and total MMP activities correlated strongly with each other.
Conclusions:
In the eyes with B-KPro, tear MMP-8 and MMP-9 levels seem to be related to the underlying ocular surface pathology and not significantly influenced by the presence of the prosthesis.
