Ricerc@Sapienza

The involvement of neuro-inflammation has been demonstrated in asthma, allergic rhinitis (AR), conjunctivitis and atopic dermatitis. Allergic reaction is associated with local production and release of neuromediators such as Nerve Growth Factor (NGF), substance P and Calcitonine-gene related peptide. Patients with allergic diseases showed increased serum and local NGF levels during inflammation or after allergen challenge.

Retinal ganglion cell (RGC) degeneration occurs within 2 weeks following optic nerve crush (ONC) as a consequence of reduced retro-transport of growth factors including nerve growth factor (NGF). The hypothesis that intravitreal (ivt) and eye drop (ed) administration of recombinant human NGF (rhNGF) might counteract ONC in adult rats is explored in this study. We found that both ivt- and ed-rhNGF reduced RGC loss and stimulated axonal regrowth.