Aryl hydrocarbon receptor knock-out exacerbates choroidal neovascularization via multiple pathogenic pathways.

ABSTRACT: The aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR) is a heterodimeric transcriptional regulator with pleiotropic functions in xenobiotic metabolism and detoxification, vascular development and cancer. Herein, we report a previously undescribed role for the AhR signalling pathway in the pathogenesis of the wet, neovascular subtype of age-related macular degeneration (AMD), the leading cause of vision loss in the elderly in the Western world. Comparative analysis of gene expression profiles of aged AhR(-/-) and wild-type (wt) mice, using high-throughput RNA sequencing, revealed differential modulation of genes belonging to several AMD-related pathogenic pathways, including inflammation, angiogenesis and extracellular matrix regulation. To investigate AhR regulation of these pathways in wet AMD, we experime

SUBMITTER: Choudhary M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4277859 | biostudies-literature | 2015 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature