Research progress on the role of pericytes in neovascular eye diseases

Abstract

Neovascular eye disease, which is characterized by pathological neovascular formation, is a major disease threatening visual health. In recent years, neovascular eye disease has become a serious public health problem and attracted widespread attention, with the incidence increasing year by year. Pathological neovascularization is formed under the mutual inclusion and interaction of a variety of cellular components and pathological factors. It is often difficult to achieve ideal therapeutic effect if we intervene only one of the factors. Therefore, it is in an urgent need to conduct a more in-depth study in the pathological process of neovascularization and explore new factors that regulate neovascularization in order to find more effective treatments of neovascular eye diseases. In recent years, pericyte has been proved to play important roles in the occurrence and development of various neovascular eye diseases and interventions for pericytes will affect the pathological process of these diseases. This article will review the specific roles of pericytes in some common neovascular eye diseases and the factors regulating pericytes in these diseases, which would provide new ideas in the treatment of neovascular eye diseases.

Keywords

• pericytes
• neovascular eye diseases
• diabetic retinopathy
• retinopathy of prematurity
• choroidal neovascular