Analysis of nestin protein in the aqueous humor as biomarker of open angle glaucoma

A Pulliero; A Izzotti; L Pastorino; S Gandolfi

doi:10.1016/j.heliyon.2022.e09753

Analysis of nestin protein in the aqueous humor as biomarker of open angle glaucoma

Heliyon. 2022 Jun 19;8(6):e09753. doi: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2022.e09753. eCollection 2022 Jun.

Authors

A Pulliero¹, A Izzotti^{2

3}, L Pastorino⁴, S Gandolfi⁵

Affiliations

¹ Department of Health Sciences, University of Genoa, Via A. Pastore 1 Genoa, Italy.
² UOC Mutagenesis and Cancer Prevention, IRCCS Ospedale Policlinico San Martino, Largo Rosanna Benzi, 10, Genoa, Italy.
³ Department of Experimental Medicine, University of Genoa, Italy.
⁴ Department of Informatics, Bioengineering, Robotics and Systems Engineering, University of Genova, Via all' Opera Pia 13, 16145 Genoa, Italy.
⁵ Ophthalmology Unit, Department of Biological Biotechnological and Translational Sciences, University of Parma, Parma, Italy.

Abstract

Primary open angle glaucoma (POAG) is a progressive optic nerve degeneration, leading to irreversible visual damage. Alterations of the aqueous humor (AH), the biological fluid filling both the anterior and the posterior chambers of the eye, play a pathogenic role in POAG. AH protein composition is altered during glaucoma progression. Nestin protein was found to be differentially expressed in the AH of glaucomatous patients compared to unaffected matched controls.

Methods: Nestin was analyzed by an open quartz crystal microbalance (QCM) in the AH of 21 glaucomatous patients compared to nine unaffected controls. The surface of the electrode used in the QCM was coated with an analyte-specific recognition layer.

Results: Positive nestin values were recorded in the AH collected from POAG patients; negative values of nestin detection were obtained by analyzing the AH collected from non-POAG glaucomatous patients and unaffected controls.

Conclusion: The present study proposes and validates a new clinically applicable approach to analyze biological markers in AH for POAG diagnosis.

Keywords: Chemical coating on gold surface; Early diagnosis; Open quartz crystal microbalance (QCM); Primary open angle glaucoma; Quartz sensor.