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Review
. 2006 Dec;4(4):294-309.
doi: 10.3121/cmr.4.4.294.

Cytokines and chemokines in uveitis: is there a correlation with clinical phenotype?

Kenneth G-J Ooi  1 , Grazyna Galatowicz, Virginia L Calder, Susan L Lightman
Affiliations
Review

Cytokines and chemokines in uveitis: is there a correlation with clinical phenotype?

Kenneth G-J Ooi et al. Clin Med Res. 2006 Dec.

Abstract

Uveitis is a general term for intraocular inflammation and includes a large number of clinical phenotypes. As a group of disorders, it is responsible for 10% of all registered blind patients under the age of 65 years. Immune-mediated uveitis may be associated with a systemic disease or may be localized to the eye. The pro-inflammatory cytokines interleukin (IL)-1beta, IL-2, IL-6, interferon-gamma and tumor necrosis factor-alpha have all been detected within the ocular fluids or tissues in the inflamed eye together with others, such as IL-4, IL-5, IL-10 and transforming growth factor-beta. The chemokines IL-8, monocyte chemoattractant protein-1, macrophage inflammatory protein (MIP)-1alpha, MIP-1beta and fractalkine are also thought to be involved in the associated inflammatory response. There have been a number of studies in recent years investigating cytokine profiles in different forms of uveitis with a view to determining what cytokines are important in the inflamed eye. This review attempts to present the current state of knowledge from in vitro and in vivo research on the inflammatory cytokines in intraocular inflammatory diseases.

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Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Uveitis in Behçet’s disease. (A) Red eye with white fluid level in anterior chamber (hypopyon). (B) Area of retinal vascular ischemia and inflammation causing retinitis (white) and hemorrhage (red).
Figure 2.
Figure 2.
Uveitis in sarcoidosis. (A) Multifocal choroiditis (as shown by the pigmented scars). (B) Right optic nerve is swollen with a granuloma as compared to the left nerve which is normal.
Figure 3.
Figure 3.
Uveitis in Vogt-Koyanagi-Harada (VKH) disease. (A) Swollen pink optic nerve with white granulomas in the choroid. (B) Total serous retinal detachment. Retina is gray instead of pink.
Figure 4.
Figure 4.
Uveitis in ankylosing spondylitis. (A) Eye is red. (B) Shows magnified view with active inflammatory cells on the back of the cornea (keratic precipitates).
Figure 5.
Figure 5.
Uveitis in Fuch’s heterochromic cyclitis (FHC). Typical appearance of small white keratic precipitates all over back of cornea in a white eye.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Comment in

  • Cytokines in uveitis.
    van Laar JA, van Hagen PM. van Laar JA, et al. Clin Med Res. 2006 Dec;4(4):248-9. doi: 10.3121/cmr.4.4.248. Clin Med Res. 2006. PMID: 17210973 Free PMC article. No abstract available.

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