RETINAL GLUTAMATE IN EXPERIMENTAL GLAUCOMA

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DESCRIPTION: (from the abstract) The investigator intends to explore the underlying basis of retinal ganglion cell death seen in primary open angle glaucoma. Her investigations are based on previous work that has suggested that glutamate is abnormally high in the vitreous of patients with glaucoma. She intends to explore first the relationship between vitreal glutamate concentration and glaucomatous damage. This will be carried out by gas chromatography/mass spectroscopy in the paired eyes of monkeys with monocular experimentally induced glaucoma. She intends to correlate the magnitude of the glutamate elevation with the degree of nerve fiber loss. Secondly, she presents the hypothesis that the elevation in vitreal glutamate is a consequence of a perturbation in Muller cells. Retinal Muller cells are known to play a major role in the removal of glutamate from the extracellular space, and in its subsequent metabolism. The hypothesis is therefore presented that the elevated vitreal glutamate level can be the result of alterations in the activity of Muller cells. She intends to carry out immunocytochemical analyses to assess alterations in Muller cell activity in glutamate metabolism. It is hoped, based on these findings, that an explanation will be found for the elevated level of glutamate in the vitreous, as well as identifying potential new pharmacologic agents.