《生命科学》 2022, 34(7): 838-847

视网膜神经节细胞生存与凋亡分子机制的研究进展

张　佳 , 姚　凯^*

武汉科技大学生命科学与健康学院，视神经科学与干细胞工程研究院，武汉 430065

摘　要：

视网膜神经节细胞(retinal ganglion cell, RGC) 是位于视网膜最终段的神经细胞，具有将视觉信息传递到脑部的功能。RGC 及其轴突进行性丢失导致青光眼等疾病。在青光眼发展过程中，促凋亡因子( 如丝裂原活化蛋白激酶、转化生长因子-β、活性氧、Ca2+、Bcl-2 相关X 蛋白、Bcl-2 细胞死亡调节因子、含半胱氨酸的天冬氨酸蛋白水解酶等) 上调引起RGC 死亡，最终导致视力丧失，而增多的促生存因子( 如Wnt、脑源性神经营养因子) 则有助于RGC 的存活。该文通过分析近年来RGC 生存与凋亡相关的研究成果，总结了生存因子促进RGC 存活和凋亡因子引起RGC 死亡的分子机制。掌握促凋亡因子和促生存因子的作用机理将有助于了解青光眼复杂的病理生理过程，为新的分子靶标和药物开发提供思路。

通讯作者：姚　凯 , Email:kyao21@outlook.com

Research progress on the survival and apoptosis molecular mechanism of retinal ganglion cells

ZHANG Jia , YAO Kai^*

Institute of Visual Neuroscience and Stem Cell Engineering, College of Life Sciences and Health, Wuhan University of Science and Technology, Wuhan 430055, China)

Abstract:

Retinal ganglion cells (RGCs) are nerve cells located in the final segment of the retina and have the function of transmitting visual information to the brain. The progressive loss of RGC and its axons leads to diseases such as glaucoma. During the development of glaucoma, pro-apoptotic factors (such as mitogen-activated protein kinases, transforming growth factor-β, reactive oxygen species, Ca2+, Bcl-2-associated X protein, Bcl-2 interacting mediator of cell death, cysteinyl aspartate specific proteinases, etc.) are upregulated, which in turn leads to the death of RGC and loss of vision ultimately. The increase in pro-survival factors (such as Wnt, brain-derived neurotrophic factor) contributes to the survival of RGC. The molecular mechanism by which survival factors promote RGC survival and apoptosis factors cause RGC death in recent years has been reviewed in this paper. Mastering the mechanism of pro-apoptotic factors and pro-survival factors may help to understand the complex pathophysiological process of glaucoma and provide ideas for new molecular targets and drug development.

Communication Author：YAO Kai , Email:kyao21@outlook.com