Hydrogen Therapy Reduces Eye Inflammation by Targeting Specific Genes
- Authors
- Guo-Dan Liu, Hong Zhang, Lin Wang, Qing Han, Shi-Feng Zhou, Ping Liu
- Journal
- International Journal of Ophthalmology
- Year
- 2013
- DOI
- 10.3980/j.issn.2222-3959.2013.03.05
- Study Type
- Cell Culture
- Outcome
- Positive
- Peer Reviewed
- Yes
- Country
- China
- Health Condition
- Retinal Inflammation
- Body System
- Visual
TL;DR
Molecular hydrogen can affect certain microRNAs and reduce inflammation in eye immune cells activated by bacterial components.
Key Finding
Molecular hydrogen reduced inflammation markers in eye immune cells by decreasing two microRNAs (miR-9 and miR-21) while increasing another (miR-199), and by lowering key inflammatory signaling proteins.
Summary
Researchers studied how molecular hydrogen affects immune cells in the eye called microglia when they become inflamed. They exposed these cells to a trigger that causes inflammation, then treated some with hydrogen-saturated water and others without. Hydrogen treatment changed the activity of three specific molecules called microRNAs and reduced the production of inflammatory signaling proteins, suggesting hydrogen may have anti-inflammatory effects in eye tissue.
Practical Takeaway
This is an early laboratory study using isolated cells, not human testing, so it cannot yet demonstrate that hydrogen water would have these effects in the body. The findings suggest hydrogen may work against inflammation through specific molecular pathways, but much more research—including animal and human studies—would be needed to determine if this translates to real health benefits for eye or brain health.
Abstract
Aim: To explore the potential mechanism of molecular hydrogen in the regulation of miRNA expression and signal-modulating activities. Methods: Retinal microglia cells were activated by Lipopolysaccharides (LPS) and then treated with hydrogen-saturated medium or normal medium without hydrogen. qRT-PCR was used to detect the expression difference in miR-9, miR-21 and miR-199 between these two groups. Moreover, the expression of LPS-induced signaling proteins, including Myd88, IKK-β, NF-κB, and PDCD4, were detected by Western blotting. Results: The results demonstrated a marked down-regulation of miR-9 and miR-21 and up-regulation of miR-199 by hydrogen treatment; the expression of Myd88 and IKK-β was decreased after hydrogen treatment, whereas PDCD4 was increased, and there was no significant change in NF-κB expression. Conclusion: The results in the present study indicate that miR-9, miR-199 and miR-21 play an important role in the anti-inflammatory regulation of LPS-activated microglia cells by molecular hydrogen, which will help to explain the protective mechanism of molecular hydrogen against inflammatory injury.