Researchers from Augusta University have found a man-made version of an anti-inflammatory molecule in our blood may help protect against vision loss in diabetic retinopathy.
According to researchers, high levels of glucose in the blood can cause high circulating level of IL-6 — an immune system driver found to be a major player in inflammation-driven diseases such as diabetic retinopathy. Normally sgp130 is also in the blood, which is an IL-6 inhibitor. However, researchers found diabetes can alter things so the amount of sgp130 is not always sufficient.
For this reason, the research team received a $1.5 million grant from the National Eye Institute (NEI) to target IL-6 in diabetic retinopathy with a synthetic version of sgp130 — called sgp130-Fc — that is reportedly 10 times more powerful than the natural version. The team has reportedly been testing the use of sgp130-Fc in human tissue and mouse models, and the new grant will allow further exploration.
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Source: Augusta University