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The Role of Microglia in Inherited Retinal Diseases

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Retinal Degenerative Diseases XIX

Part of the book series: Advances in Experimental Medicine and Biology ((AEMB,volume 1415))

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Abstract

Inherited retinal diseases (IRDs) are a leading cause of irreversible visual loss in the developed world. The primary driver of pathology in IRDs is pathogenic genetic variant. However, there is increasing evidence, from recent studies, for a role of the immune system in disease mechanism, particularly retinal microglia. Microglia are the primary immune cells in the retina and actively contribute to disease pathogenesis when activated locally by phagocytosing photoreceptors, inducing inflammation and signaling infiltration of circulating monocytes. In this article, we discuss the evidence for the contribution of retinal microglia to IRD pathogenesis reported so far using mice model.

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Acknowledgments

S.B. is supported by the Foundation Fighting Blindness Career Development Award. This artwork was prepared using BioRender.com.

Conflict of Interest

None.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Jacobs Retina Center, Shiley Eye Institute, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA

    Asha Kumari & Shyamanga Borooah

Authors
  1. Asha Kumari
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  2. Shyamanga Borooah
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Shyamanga Borooah .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Ophthalmology, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, PA, USA

    John D. Ash

  2. Ocular Genomics InstituteDepartment of OphthalmologyMassachusetts Eye and Ear InfirmaryHarvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA

    Eric Pierce

  3. Health Sciences Center, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, OK, USA

    Robert E. Anderson

  4. Department of Ophthalmology, Duke Medical Center, Durham, NC, USA

    Catherine Bowes Rickman

  5. Department of Ophthalmology, Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine, Cleveland, OH, USA

    Joe G. Hollyfield

  6. Laboratory for Retinal Cell BiologyDepartment of OphthalmologyUniversity Hospital Zurich, University of Zurich, Schlieren, Switzerland

    Christian Grimm

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Kumari, A., Borooah, S. (2023). The Role of Microglia in Inherited Retinal Diseases. In: Ash, J.D., Pierce, E., Anderson, R.E., Bowes Rickman, C., Hollyfield, J.G., Grimm, C. (eds) Retinal Degenerative Diseases XIX. Advances in Experimental Medicine and Biology, vol 1415. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-27681-1_29

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