Multileveled Molecular Mechanisms Related to Oxidative Stress in Retinitis Pigmentosa II

Generally, photoreceptor cell survival is ensured by retinal pigment epithelium (RPE), which provides many vital functions, such as phagocytosis of photoreceptor outer segments, metabolite transport, photoreceptor excitability, regulation of the visual cycle, secretion of growth factors, and oxidative stress protection.

Among the main causes of RP, the RPE disruption induced by oxidative stress represents the most complex and still not sufficiently explored. RPE degeneration alters cell cycle, vesicular trafficking, cell migration, endoplasmic reticulum stress, chaperones activity, small GTPase signaling, retinoic acid cycle, microvascular integrity, chromosome stability, circadian rhythms, fatty acid metabolism, synapses integrity, and retinal cell rescue.

This research topic will discuss the most recent preclinical and clinical evidence highlighting the central role of oxidative stress in the onset and progression of RP, analyzing the extraordinary complexity of the multileveled molecular mechanisms and the current strategies adopted to protect the retina.