Vitamin D and its receptor polymorphisms are associated with glaucoma

Area of Science:

• Ophthalmology
• Endocrinology
• Genetics

Background:

• Glaucoma is a leading cause of irreversible blindness worldwide.
• Vitamin D plays a crucial role in calcium homeostasis and has immunomodulatory functions.
• Vitamin D receptor (VDR) gene polymorphisms may influence susceptibility to various diseases.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the association between serum vitamin D levels and VDR gene polymorphisms with the risk of developing glaucoma.
• To synthesize existing evidence through a comprehensive meta-analysis.

Main Methods:

• A meta-analysis was conducted on studies examining serum vitamin D levels and VDR polymorphisms in glaucoma patients and control groups.
• Data from 12 studies involving 130,676 subjects for serum vitamin D and 476 for VDR polymorphisms were analyzed.

Main Results:

• Glaucoma patients exhibited significantly lower serum vitamin D levels compared to controls (SMD=-1.16, P<0.00001).
• A significant association was found between glaucoma and VDR BsmI (rs1544410) polymorphism in both allelic (OR=1.84) and recessive (OR=3.16) models.
• No significant association was observed with VDR TaqI (rs731236) or FokI (rs2228570) polymorphisms.

Conclusions:

• The findings suggest a potential link between vitamin D deficiency and glaucoma.
• The vitamin D signaling pathway, particularly VDR BsmI polymorphism, may contribute to glaucoma pathogenesis.
• Vitamin D supplementation could be a potential adjunctive therapy for glaucoma management.