Systemic mitochondrial function as a biomarker for open angle glaucoma
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Systemic Mitochondrial Function: A Clinically Useful Novel Biomarker For Open Angle Glaucoma
IRAS ID
235649
Contact name
David Garway-Heath
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University College London
Clinicaltrials.gov Identifier
Z6364106/2017/10/102 , UCL Data Protection reference
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 0 months, 0 days
Research summary
Glaucoma is a neurodegenerative disease of the optic nerve and the leading cause of irreversible blindness worldwide. Raised eye pressure is the major risk factor for glaucoma, but patients deteriorate at all levels of eye pressure, suggesting that the pathogenesis of glaucoma is multifactorial. The second most important established risk factor for glaucoma is increasing age. A useful biological marker of ageing is mitochondrial function. Mitochondria, the so called 'powerhouses' of the cell, are structures within every cell that produce energy and are therefore fundamental to cell life and death. Glaucoma is characterised by the selective and gradual loss of specific cells in the optic nerve called retinal ganglion cells (RGCs), which are highly energy dependent, and increasing evidence suggests that systemic mitochondrial abnormalities are implicated in glaucoma. We have recently concluded a novel exploratory study showing, for the first time, that patients who do not develop glaucoma despite having a raised eye pressure have more efficient mitochondria (measured in peripheral blood lymphocytes), when compared to age-similar controls and fast progressing glaucoma patients. This would suggest that mitochondrial efficiency is associated with enhanced ability to withstand optic nerve damage. We now propose to conduct the first, to our knowledge, observational study undertaken to investigate the association between systemic mitochondrial function and the rate of glaucoma progression in a large cohort of glaucoma patients. 200 participants from the glaucoma clinics at Moorfields Eye Hospital will be invited to participate by offering a blood sample for the analysis of systemic mitochondrial function and future genetic analyses. This observational study aims to identify the extent to which mitochondrial function explains the rate of glaucoma progression. This will enable us to determine whether mitochondrial function measured in peripheral blood can serve as a clinically useful biomarker for glaucoma susceptibility. Mitochondrial function would thus play an important role in glaucoma risk stratification; susceptible patients would be monitored more closely and treated more intensively, thus helping to prevent glaucoma blindness.
REC name
London - Surrey Borders Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
18/LO/0081
Date of REC Opinion
23 Jan 2018
REC opinion
Favourable Opinion