• Tianjin Key Laboratory of Retinal Functions and Diseases, Tianjin International Joint Research and Development Centre of Ophthalmology and Vision Science, Eye Institute and School of Optometry, Tianjin Medical University Eye Hospital, Tianjin 300384, China;
  • Huang Xinyuan and Shao Yan are contributed equally to the article;
Li Xiaorong, Email: xiaorli@163.com
Export PDF Favorites Scan Get Citation

Neurovascular unit (NVU) refers to a functional complex of neural cells and vasculature, which plays an important role in maintaining retinal homeostasis and matching metabolic demands. In physiological situation, retinal NVU mainly exerts two effects: (1) maintaining blood-retinal barrier for retinal homeostasis maintenance; (2) regulating local blood flow to meet metabolic and functional demands of the retina. The pathological changes in retinal diseases are reflected in each functional part of retinal NVU, including cell-cell connections, signal pathways, metabolic activities and cellular functions. However, the main pattern and manifestation of NVU impairment differs among retinal diseases due to different etiologies. At present, understanding on retinal NVU is still insufficient, and its clinical application is even more limited. Further application in the diagnosis and treatment of retinal diseases is an important direction for future research on NVU.

Citation: Huang Xinyuan, Shao Yan, Li Xiaorong. Advances in the effect of neurovascular unit in retinal physiological and pathological process. Chinese Journal of Ocular Fundus Diseases, 2022, 38(2): 168-172. doi: 10.3760/cma.j.cn511434-20210111-00013 Copy

  • Previous Article

    Surgical treatment and current advances of persistent fetal vasculature syndrome
  • Next Article

    Issues related to artificial intelligence research in ophthalmology