Version 1
: Received: 16 June 2024 / Approved: 16 June 2024 / Online: 17 June 2024 (07:57:48 CEST)
How to cite:
Schwartz, L.; Schwartz, J.; Hnery, M.; Bakkar, A. Metabolic Shift and Increased Osmotic Pressure Underlie Age-Related Macular Degeneration: A Review. Preprints2024, 2024061051. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202406.1051.v1
Schwartz, L.; Schwartz, J.; Hnery, M.; Bakkar, A. Metabolic Shift and Increased Osmotic Pressure Underlie Age-Related Macular Degeneration: A Review. Preprints 2024, 2024061051. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202406.1051.v1
Schwartz, L.; Schwartz, J.; Hnery, M.; Bakkar, A. Metabolic Shift and Increased Osmotic Pressure Underlie Age-Related Macular Degeneration: A Review. Preprints2024, 2024061051. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202406.1051.v1
APA Style
Schwartz, L., Schwartz, J., Hnery, M., & Bakkar, A. (2024). Metabolic Shift and Increased Osmotic Pressure Underlie Age-Related Macular Degeneration: A Review. Preprints. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202406.1051.v1
Chicago/Turabian Style
Schwartz, L., Marc Hnery and Ashraf Bakkar. 2024 "Metabolic Shift and Increased Osmotic Pressure Underlie Age-Related Macular Degeneration: A Review" Preprints. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202406.1051.v1
Abstract
In our previous papers, we demonstrated that inflammation and aging are the common roots of cancer and Alzheimer’s disease (AD). In both diseases, there is an inhibition of the mitochondria. In cancer, the alkaline intracellular pH (pHi) is associated with cell proliferation; acidic pHi causes apoptosis in AD. This difference is because cancer feeds on chemically neutral glucose, while neurons feed on acidic lactic acid. Increased uptake of lactic acid is responsible for acidic pH and cell death. Similarly, to AD, inflammation is responsible for metabolic shifts in age-related macular degeneration (AMD). In AD, there is hyperosmolarity responsible for increased lactic secretion by glial cells. Increased lactic secretion will cause neo-angiogenesis and neural cell death. Drugs increasing hyperosmolarity (Polyethylene Glycol) cause neo-angiogenesis and drusen-like structures in rodents. The link between AMD and inflammation is reinforced by the fact that treatments aiming at restoring mitochondrial activity, such as lipoic acid and/or methylene blue, have been experimentally shown to be effective in each set of diseases. The role of osmolarity has been demonstrated in the pathologies of the anterior segment of the eye, such as dry eye, corneal ulceration, cataracts, and glaucoma. The role of increased osmolarity in age-related macular degeneration (AMD) has been largely overlooked. We herein suggest that metabolic shift, inflammation, and hyperosmolarity are key players in the pathogenesis of AMD.
Biology and Life Sciences, Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
Copyright:
This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
