Polarity and epithelial-mesenchymal transition of retinal pigment epithelial cells in proliferative vitreoretinopathy

Hui Zou; Chenli Shan; Linlin Ma; Jia Liu; Ning Yang; Jinsong Zhao

doi:10.7717/peerj.10136

Polarity and epithelial-mesenchymal transition of retinal pigment epithelial cells in proliferative vitreoretinopathy

PeerJ. 2020 Oct 20:8:e10136. doi: 10.7717/peerj.10136. eCollection 2020.

Authors

Hui Zou¹, Chenli Shan¹, Linlin Ma¹, Jia Liu¹, Ning Yang¹, Jinsong Zhao¹

Affiliation

¹ Eye Center, The Second Hospital of Jilin University, Changchun, China.

Abstract

Under physiological conditions, retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) is a cellular monolayer composed of mitotically quiescent cells. Tight junctions and adherens junctions maintain the polarity of RPE cells, and are required for cellular functions. In proliferative vitreoretinopathy (PVR), upon retinal tear, RPE cells lose cell-cell contact, undergo epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT), and ultimately transform into myofibroblasts, leading to the formation of fibrocellular membranes on both surfaces of the detached retina and on the posterior hyaloids, which causes tractional retinal detachment. In PVR, RPE cells are crucial contributors, and multiple signaling pathways, including the SMAD-dependent pathway, Rho pathway, MAPK pathways, Jagged/Notch pathway, and the Wnt/β-catenin pathway are activated. These pathways mediate the EMT of RPE cells, which play a key role in the pathogenesis of PVR. This review summarizes the current body of knowledge on the polarized phenotype of RPE, the role of cell-cell contact, and the molecular mechanisms underlying the RPE EMT in PVR, emphasizing key insights into potential approaches to prevent PVR.

Keywords: Adherens junctions; Epithelial-mesenchymal transition; Proliferative vitreoretinopathy; Retinal pigment epithelium; Tight junctions.

Grants and funding

This work was supported by the Medical and Health Personnel Special Project of Jilin Province (Grant No. 2019SCZT021) and the Health Service Capacity Improvement Project of Health and Family Planning Commission of Jilin Province (Grant No. 3D5172173429). The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.