Studies on uveitis have gained a great achievement during recent years in China.A number of studies have provided evidences to support the opinion that both Th1 and Th17 cells are involved in the pathogenesis of uveitis.Increased resistance of lym- phocytes to apoptosis due to disturbed expression and Fas/FasL,decreased frequencies and function of CD4+CD25high T cells,in- creased leptin and polymorphisms of certain Cytokines are also involved in the development or recurrence of uveitis.Clinical studies have revealed distinctive features of Vogt-Koyanagi-Harada syndrome and Fuchs syndrome in Chinese patients.Studies using Laser flare-cell meter and multifocal electroretinography have greatly contributed to our understanding of the pathophysiological alterations of uveitis.A number of papers on uveitis have been published in the top journels of ophthalmology in the world.However,it is worthwhile to point that there are very few doctors engaged in uveitis study and that diagnosis and treatment of uveitis should be further improved in future in China.

The knowledge of uveitis of Chinese eye doctors has been improved in general.While the usage of glucocorticoid agents Was more reasonable,other non-corticoid immunosuppressant get moreattention recently.The usage of antibiotics also has being reduced gradually.The international impact of our uveitis research has been enhanced.However there are still some problems,such as big difference between different regions of uveitis research,still many misunderstandings on the treatment of uveitis complications,and the reasonable evaluation of intravitreal injection with glucocorticoid needs emphasis.In China Behcet's disease and Vogt-Koyangi-Harada syndrome are the most common uveitis subtypes which can lead to blindness,but some rare subtypes of uveitis are also increasing such as syphilitic uveitis,acquired immune deficiency syndrome(AIDS),mycotic endophthalmitis and masquerade syndrome.In the future we need cooperative studies between multicenters to investigate the effectiveness of different treatment strategies for Behcet's disease and Vogt-Koyangi-Harada syndrome,and to optimizing the best therapeutic schedule.We also need to pay more attentions to the clinical features of those uveitis subtypes which increased recently;and to investigate the prevention and therapeutic effect of induction of immune tolerance to uveitis.

Objective To investigate the effects of ?-interferon (IFN-? on the expression of costimulatory molecules B7-1 (CD80) and B7-2 (CD86) and Fas/FasL in human retina. Methods Nine human eyes were obtained from the eye-bank of Zhongshan Ophthalmic Center. Six eyes were used for making retinal wholemounts, and 12 retinal wholemounts from each eye were put into the 24-hole culture board which had 2ml DMEM/F12 culture medium in each hole. The wholemounts were divided into 3 groups whose concentration of IFN-? was 0, 200, and 1 000 U/ml respectively. After cultured in 37℃ culture box (95%O2,5%CO2) for 24 hours, the expressions of B7-1 (CD80), B7-2 (CD86), and Fas/FasL on these retinal wholemounts were detected by immunohistochemical method. The retinal wholemounts from 3 healthy people were detected by immunohistochemical method as the control. Results Expression of FasL but not B7-1, B7-2 or Fas was found in the control group, while the expression of B7-1, B7-2 and Fas and increased expression of FasL were found after cultured with IFN-?. Conclusion IFN-? may be involved in the occurrence of ocular immune response and induction of apoptosis via the stimulation of expression of costimulatory molecules and Fas/FasL, which plays an important role in the activation of T lymphocytes.

Objective To study the clinical classification and etiologies of uveitis based on 1 214 uveitis patients reffered to Zhongshan Ophthalmic Center. Methods A retrospective analysis was made on the patients with uveitis, coming from all over China between January 1996 and December 2001. All kinds of uveitis were classified according to the anatomical criteria and etiological criteria. The relevant data of these patients, such as the age at uveitis onset and sex were also analyzed. Results The total number of the patients is 1 214 (male 698, female 516), with the average age at disease onset being 34.43. Anterior uveitis, the most common type, was seen in 546 cases, accounting for 44.98% of all the patients, followed in descending order by panuveitis (530 cases, 43.66%), intermediate uveitis(78 cases, 6.43%) and posterior uveitis(60 cases, 4.94%). Etiological factors and clinical entities were identified in 703 patients, accounting for 57.91% of all the patients, and the other 511 patients were idiopathic ones. The most common types of anterior uveitis were idiopathic uveitis(316 cases, 57.88%), followed by Fuchs syndrome(85 cases) and ankylosing spondylitis(45 cases). Behcet ) disease(218 cases, 41.13%) and Vogt-Koyanagi-Harada syndrome(196 cases, 36.98%) were the most common entities in panuveitis. Neither etiological factors nor clinical entities could be identified in the patients with intermediate uveitis and those with posterior uveitis. Conclusions Uveitis occurs mostly in young and middle-aged adults. In general, a predilection was seen in the male as compared with the female in the development of uveitis. Idiopathic anterior uveitis, Behcet ) disease and Vogt-Koyanagi-Harada syndrome are the most common entities of uveitis seen in China. Classification based on etiological and anatomical factors may provide a reasonable system for the study of uveitis.

ObjectiveTo investigate the expression of costimulatory molecules, Fas/FasL, and major histocompatibility complex (MHC)-class Ⅱ antigens in normal ocular tissues.MethodsTwelve eyes were obtained from the eye bank of Zhongshan Ophthalmic Center within 16 to 24 hours postmortem. Six eyes were used for making the retinal wholemounts, and the tissues (iris and ciliary body, choroid, and retina) of the others were used for making the frozen sections. Immunohistochemical staining was carried out on these retinal wholemounts as well as on tissue sections to investigate the exprenion of B7-1 and B7-2 (costimulatory molecules), HLA-DR(MHC class Ⅱ), CD68 (macrophages), Fas/FasL.ResultsThe results of immunohistochemical staining showed the presence of B7-2, FasL, CD68 and HLA-DR in the iris and ciliary body. Expression of B7-1, FasL, CD68, and HLA-DR was found in the choroid while HLA-DR, CD68 and FasL were detectable in the retina.ConclusionExpression of costimulatory molecules, MHC-class Ⅱ molecules and molecules related to apoptosis is different in the iris, ciliary body, choroid, and retina, which may play an important role in the stability of the immunological microenvironment of these tissues.

Objective To investigate the expression of costimulatory molecules( B7, CD28, and CTLA-4) of peripheral blood lymphocytes in patients with Behcet′s ) disease(BD). Methods Lymphocytes were obtained in 24 patients with BD and 20 healthy individuals, and the expression of CD80(B7-1), CD86(B7-2), CD28 and CTLA-4 on T and B cells were detected by direct three-color immunofluorescence flow cytometry. Results Significantly increased expression of CTLA-4 on CD4 + T cells [(3. 18?1. 18)%] was found in BD patients compared with that in controls [(1. 73?0. 66) %] ( t=-3. 722,P

Objective To investigate the expression and significance of T-bet in experimental autoimmune uveoretinitis (EAU). Methods EAU was induced in 24 Lewis rats by immunization with retinal S-antigen (50 ?g) and complete Freund′s adjuvant, and another 4 rats were the healthy control. The rats with EAU were executed 7, 12, 15, 21 days after immunization, respectively. Immunohistochemical single and double staining were performed using monoclonal antibodies of T-bet or CD4 on the ocular wholemounts and the consecutive sections of the eye and spleen from both 24 immunized Lewis rats and 4 normal controls. The positive cells were counted under the optic microscope and the data were analyzed by SPSS 11.0 statistic software. Results A few T-bet positive cells were observed in the normal ocular tissues and spleen. The expressions of T-bet in the iris, retina, and spleen increased 7 days after immunization, reached the peak at the 15th day, and decreased at the 21st day, which were higher than those in the control. Double staining on the consecutive sections revealed that most of the T-bet positive cells were positive for CD4 monoclonal antibody. Conclusion T-bet may affect the occurrence of EAU by activating Th1 cells.

Objective To investigate the expression of T cell receptor (TCR) V ?8.3 gene on CD4+ T lymphocytes in the rats with experimental autoimmune uveoretinitis (EAU). Methods Eighteen Lewis rats were divided into EAU, complete Freund′s adjuvant, and the control group. Interphotoreceptor retinoid-binding protein (IRBP) R16 peptide was synthesized using Fmoc procedure for induction of EAU. Magnetic absorption cell sorting (MACS) method was used to isolate the CD4+ T lymphocytes from the spleen of the rats. Flow cytometry was used to monitor the efficiency of isolation. The expression of TCR V ?8.3 gene segment on CD4+T lymphocytes was determined by fluorescent quantitative polymerase chain reaction. Results EAU was successfully induced in the Lewis rats immunized with IRBP R16 peptide. The proportion of CD4+ T lymphocytes isolated by means of MACS was statistically higher than that before isolation (P

Objective To investigate the expression and significance of inducible co-stimulator (ICOS) in experimental autoimmune uveoretinitis (EAU). Methods EAU was induced in 24 Lewis rats (immune group) by immunization with retinal S-antigen (50 ?g) and complete Freund′s adjuvant, and another 4 rats were in the control group. Anterior segment of the rats′ eyes were observed by split microscope every day. Immunohistochemical staining was performed using polyclonal antibodies to ICOS on the sections of the spleen which were obtained from the rats in immune group at the 7th, 12th, 15th and 21st days after immunisation respectively. Western blotting was performed to investigate the dynamic expression of ICOS protein in the spleen. The same procedures were made at the corresponding time points in the rats in control group. Results A few ICOS positive cells were observed in the normal spleen. The number of ICOS positive cells in immune group increased obviously at the 7th and 12th days after immunization, reached the peak at the 15th day, and decreased at the 21st day which was still higher than that in the control group. The result of Western blotting showed that the dynamic changes of ICOS protein was identical with the changes of positive-cell number detected by immunohistochemistry. Conclusions The enhanced expression of ICOS happens before EAU occurs, which increases when the inflammation occurs and deteriorates, and decreases at the alleviative stage of EAU. It suggests that ICOS participates in the formation, development and disappearance of EAU and plays an important role in the incidence of EAU.

Objective To detect the changes of function of blood-aqueous barrier in different Syndrome stages of patients with Vogt-Koyanagi-Harada (VKH) syndrome in order to provide the appropriate therapy. Methods According to clinical manifestation, 77 patients (144 eyes) with VKH syndrome were divided into 4 groups: 10 cases in posterior uvietis stage group (20 eyes), 27 in anterior uveal involvement stage group (50 eyes), 23 in recurrent anterior uvitis stage group (41 eyes), and 17 in convalescent stage group (33 eyes). The other 50 cases (100 eyes) were in the control group. Flare and cells of anterior chamber in patient with VKH Syndrome at different stages were graded and measured by laser flare and cell meter (LFCM) and slitlamp microscope. Results According to the results of slitlamp biomicroscopy, anterior chamber flare and cells were at the 0 grade in the patients at posterior uvietis stage (20 eyes). The results of LFCM examination revealed that the flare value and cells were (9.7?3.4) pc/ms and (0.9?0.6)/0.5 mm3 in posterior uvietis stage group, and (5.3?2.3) pc/ms and (0.8? 0.6)/0.5 mm3 in the control group. The differences between the two groups were significant (P