Uveitis induced in primates by interphotoreceptor retinoid-binding protein
S. Hirose, T. Kuwabara, R. B. Nussenblatt, B. Wiggert, T. M. Redmond and I. Gery
Interphotoreceptor retinoid-binding protein was found to be highly
uveitogenic in primates. All six monkeys immunized with bovine
interphotoreceptor retinoid-binding protein developed ocular inflammation.
The main clinical changes were sheathing of retinal vessels and deep
well-circumscribed yellow-white lesions. Histologic changes in the retina
included shortening of the outer segments and foci of inflammation, which
extended through all retinal layers. Particularly profound were the
choroidal changes, such as severe inflammatory infiltration, which often
formed focal granulomas with epithelioid and giant cells. Some granulomas
had the structure of Dalen-Fuchs nodules. These structures and other
histologic changes in the monkeys closely resemble those in uveitic
conditions in humans, such as sympathetic ophthalmia or
Vogt-Koyanagi-Harada syndrome. These findings show that antigen that
localizes specifically in the retina may initiate an immunopathogenic
process affecting mainly the choroid.
