Research progress of mouse model for age-related macular degeneration

Abstract

Age-related macular degeneration(ARMD)is the leading cause of blindness in the individuals older than 65 years in developed countries. It is a complex disease influenced by interaction of heredity, age, environment, diet, smoking and many other risk factors. Dry ARMD first damages Bruch's membrane, then affect the retinal pigment epithelium(retinal pigmented epithelium, RPE)and photoreceptors. Pathological angiogenesis and vascular permeability increasing are mediated by vascular endothelial growth factor(VEGF), resulting the formation of choroidal neovascularization. ARMD in human will not be caused by none of the single risk factors. Animal models that mimic a single factor cannot reproduce all the phenotypes of ARMD but can reproduce different characteristics. These animal models provide an entry point for studying the disease mechanism and finding the target of drug action. Specific modeling methods include laser modeling, gene modeling, feeding, oxidation and other models. This article summarizes and reviews the domestic and foreign classic literatures in this field to help researchers to select the suitable methods and provide new ideas for modeling.

Keywords

• age-related macular degeneration
• animal experiment
• mouse model
• mouse model