The role of the transforming growth factor-β pathway in the development of posterior capsule opacification / 中华实验眼科杂志

ABSTRACT

Posterior capsule opacification(PCO) is a common postoperative complication of cataract surgery.PCO is usually caused by the proliferation,migration,epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT),collagen deposition,and lens fiber regeneration of residual lens epithelial cells(LECs).Transforming growth factor-β(TGF-β) has been proposed as the most important factor driving the trans-differentiation and pathologic fibrosis of LECs.A variety of studies have elucidated that the Smad signaling pathway plays a critical role in the transduction of TGF-β signal.However,there are still other signaling pathways which may be activated downstream by TGF-β,including phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase/Akt(PI3 K/Akt),Rho,Wnt and mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPK) pathways.This review highlights recent advances in the study of the signaling pathway of TGF-β in the pathological process of PCO.