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Protective Effect of Vitamin C against Infancy Rat Corneal Injury Caused by Acute UVB Irradiation
Wei Chen1, Jianying Guo2, Haiyi Guo3
1Graduate School, Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an, Shaanxi Province 710032, China.
Insights
Vitamin C supplementation protected infant rat corneas from Ultraviolet B (UVB) damage. Treatment reduced inflammation, oxidative stress, and neovascularization, indicating a protective effect against UVB-induced eye injury.
Area of Science:
- Ophthalmology
- Toxicology
- Biochemistry
Background:
- Infant corneas are highly susceptible to Ultraviolet B (UVB) radiation damage.
- Limited data exists on UVB harm to infant eyes and preventative strategies.
- Vitamin C, a potent antioxidant, is explored for its protective potential.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the protective effects of Vitamin C against acute UVB-induced corneal injury in infant rats.
- To evaluate Vitamin C's efficacy in mitigating UVB damage and associated inflammatory responses.
Main Methods:
- Thirty-six infant rats were divided into control, UVB-exposed, and UVB-exposed plus Vitamin C groups.
- UVB irradiation was administered daily for seven days.
- Corneal morphology, serum inflammatory factors (IL-1, IL-6, TNF-α), oxidative stress markers (4-HNE, MDA), and protein expression (VEGF-α, SOD2) were analyzed.
Main Results:
- Vitamin C treatment significantly reduced corneal desquamation and neovascularization compared to UVB-only exposure.
- Corneal thickness decreased in the Vitamin C group post-UVB exposure.
- UVB increased inflammatory factors and oxidative stress markers, which were reduced by Vitamin C.
- VEGF-α expression was decreased, while SOD2 expression was increased in the Vitamin C group.
Conclusions:
- Vitamin C demonstrates a protective effect against UVB-induced corneal injury in infant rats.
- It alleviates corneal edema, reduces inflammation, and decreases VEGF-α expression.
- Vitamin C may serve as a potential therapeutic agent for preventing UVB-related eye damage in infants.
Purpose:
Studies have shown that corneas of young children were more susceptible to Ultraviolet B (UVB) radiation damage. However, there exist limited information about the harm of UVB to eyes and preventive measures on infancy. Vitamin C as an antioxidant is widely used to prevent many diseases. Therefore, the aim of this study was to explore the protective effect of vitamin C on the cornea of infant rats with acute UVB injury.
Method:
Thirty-six infant rats were randomly divided into three groups: control (CON) group, UVB (UVB) group, and UVB+vitamin C (UVB+VitC) group. The UVB group was exposed to UVB irradiation (8 J/cm2, 15 min/d, 7 d) and the UVB+vitamin C group suffered the same UVB irradiation treated with vitamin C at the dose of 40 mg/kg via intraperitoneal injection. Then, corneal morphology was detected in vivo and in vitro at 7 d post-UVB exposure. Furthermore, serum inflammatory factors (IL-1, IL-6, and TNF-α) and oxidative status (4-HNE and MDA) were detected by ELISA, and the expression of vascular endothelial growth factor-α (VEGF-α) and superoxide dismutase (SOD) in the cornea was detected by western blot or immunofluorescent staining.
Results:
Slit lamp detection revealed that the area of corneal desquamation and corneal neovascularization in the UVB+VitC group was significantly less than those in the UVB group at 7 d post-UVB exposure (all p < 0.05). OCT results showed that the thickness of the central cornea in the UVB+VitC group was decreased than that in the UVB group (p < 0.05). The serum inflammatory factors (IL-1, IL-6, and TNF-α) and oxidative status (4-HNE and MDA) in the UVB group were significantly increased compared with the CON group (all p < 0.05), while those factors in the UVB+VitC group were decreased compared with those in the UVB group. Furthermore, the expression of VEGF-α in the UVB+VitC group was dramatically decreased compared with that in the UVB group (p < 0.05), and the expression of SOD2 in the UVB+VitC group was dramatically increased compared with that in the UVB group at 7 d post-UVB exposure (p < 0.05).
Conclusion:
Vitamin C could protect infant rats from corneal injury induced by UVB via alleviating corneal edema, improving corneal inflammatory reaction, and decreasing VEGF-α expression.
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