In-vivo anterior segment OCT imaging provides unique insight into cerulean blue-dot opacities and cataracts in Down syndrome

Abstract

Down syndrome (DS) is frequently associated with cataract, but there remains scant information about DS cataract morphology. Supra-nuclear cataracts in DS have been proposed as indicative of beta-amyloid (Aβ) aggregation and thus potential biomarkers for Alzheimer’s (AD). This study employed anterior segment OCT (AS-OCT) and slit-lamp (SL) photography to image the crystalline lens in DS, compared with adult controls. Lens images were obtained post-dilation. Using MATLAB, AS-OCT images were analysed and lens opacities calculated as pixel intensity and area ratios. SL images were classified using LOCS III. Subjects were n = 28 DS (mean ± SD 24.1 ± 14.3years), and n = 36 controls (54.0 ± 3.4years). For the DS group, AS-OCT imaging revealed the frequent presence of small dot opacities (27 eyes, 50%) in the cortex and nucleus of the lens, covering an area ranging from 0.2–14%. There was no relation with age or visual acuity and these dot opacities (p > 0.5) and they were not present in any control lenses. However, their location and morphology does not coincide with previous reports linking these opacities with Aβ accumulation and AD. Four participants (14%) in the DS group had clinically significant age-related cataracts, but there was no evidence of early onset of age-related cataracts in DS.

Publication DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-020-66642-1
Divisions: College of Health & Life Sciences > School of Optometry > Optometry
Additional Information: This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license, and indicate if changes were made. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article’s Creative Commons license, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article’s Creative Commons license and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/.
Uncontrolled Keywords: General
Publication ISSN: 2045-2322
Last Modified: 19 Feb 2024 08:33
Date Deposited: 23 Jun 2020 11:52
Full Text Link:
Related URLs: http://www.natu ... 598-020-66642-1 (Publisher URL)
http://www.scop ... tnerID=8YFLogxK (Scopus URL)
PURE Output Type: Article
Published Date: 2020-06-22
Accepted Date: 2020-05-21
Authors: Little, Julie-anne
Mahil, Aman-deep S.
Richardson, Patrick
Woodhouse, J. Margaret
Vinuela-navarro, Valldeflors (ORCID Profile 0000-0002-1933-5906)
Saunders, Kathryn J.

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