Drinking hydrogen water improves photoreceptor structure and function in retinal degeneration 6 mice

Area of Science:

• Ophthalmology
• Neuroscience
• Genetics

Background:

• Retinitis pigmentosa (RP) is an inherited retinal disease causing progressive vision loss.
• Current treatments for RP are limited, necessitating novel therapeutic approaches.
• Oxidative stress from reactive oxygen species (ROS) contributes to photoreceptor degeneration in RP.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the potential therapeutic effects of hydrogen (H2) water on photoreceptor degeneration in the rd6 mouse model of retinitis pigmentosa.
• To determine if H2 administration can delay the progression of photoreceptor death and preserve retinal structure.

Main Methods:

• rd6 mice were administered H2-rich water.
• Optical coherence tomography (OCT) assessed retinal thickness.
• Histopathological and morphometric analyses evaluated retinal layers and cell counts.
• RNA sequencing (RNA-seq) analyzed gene expression changes.

Main Results:

• Mice drinking H2 water exhibited significantly greater retinal thickness compared to controls.
• Histological analysis revealed increased outer nuclear layer thickness and higher opsin-positive cell counts in H2-treated mice.
• RNA-seq identified 1996 differentially expressed genes, with significant upregulation of phototransduction pathways.

Conclusions:

• Drinking H2-rich water (1.2-1.6 ppm) demonstrated neuroprotective effects in the rd6 mouse model.
• H2 administration inhibited photoreceptor death and preserved retinal structure.
• Hydrogen water shows promise as a potential treatment for retinitis pigmentosa.