Seoul National University · Medicine
Professor Jeong Hun Kim's research lab focuses on understanding and targeting the blood-retinal barrier (BRB) and neurovascular unit dysfunction in retinal diseases, particularly diabetic retinopathy and age-related macular degeneration. The lab investigates molecular mechanisms underlying vascular inflammation, endothelial permeability, and barrier breakdown, with a strong emphasis on signaling pathways such as STAT3 and RAS/VEGF. Utilizing advanced models including organotypic eye-on-a-chip systems and in vivo studies, the lab explores nanomaterial-based drug delivery and cytoprotective strategies to preserve retinal barrier integrity and function.
Figures are computed from collected data and may differ slightly.
The retina maintains homeostasis through the blood-retinal barrier (BRB). Although it is ideal to deliver the drug to the retina via systemic administration, it is still challenging due to the BRB strictly regulating permeation from blood to the retina. Herein, we demonstrated that intravenously administered gold nanoparticles could pass through the BRB and are distributed in all retinal layers without cytotoxicity. After intravenous injection of gold nanoparticles into C57BL/6 mice, 100 nm nano
The blood-neural barrier (BNB), including blood-brain barrier (BBB) and blood-retinal barrier (BRB), is an endothelial barrier constructed by an extensive network of endothelial cells, astrocytes and neurons to form functional "neurovascular units", which has an important role in maintaining a precisely regulated microenvironment for reliable neuronal activity. Although failure of the BNB may be a precipitating event or a consequence, the breakdown of BNB is closely related with the development
Vascular inflammation is characteristic feature of diabetic retinopathy. In diabetic retina, a variety of the pro-inflammatory cytokines are elevated and involved in endothelial dysfunction. STAT3 transcription factor has been implicated in mediating cytokine signaling during vascular inflammation. However, whether and how STAT3 is involved in the direct regulation of the endothelial permeability is currently undefined. Our studies revealed that IL-6-induced STAT3 activation increases retinal en
Diabetic retinopathy (DR) is the leading cause of vision loss as a major complication of diabetes mellitus. The blood-retinal barrier (BRB) breakdown is a critical early event in the pathogenesis of DR. It has been known that the rennin-angiotensin system (RAS) is important in the progression of the DR via angiotensin II (Ang II), the effector of RAS. In this study, we showed that blockade of Ang II attenuates vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF)-mediated BRB breakdown in DR. In streptozoto
Choroidal neovascularization (CNV) in the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE)-choroid complex constituting outer blood retinal barrier (oBRB) is a critical pathological step in various ophthalmic diseases, which results in blindness, such as wet type age-related macula degeneration. Current in vitro experimental models using petri dishes or transwell are unable to study CNV morphogenesis. Here, a unique organotypic eye-on-a-chip model is described that mimics the RPE-choroid complex in vitro. This
Purpose.: Oxidative stress to retinal pigment epithelial (RPE) cells is thought to play a critical role in the pathogenesis of age-related macular degeneration (AMD). This study was conducted to investigate whether clusterin protects human RPE cells from ROS-induced apoptosis through a PI3K/Akt survival pathway. Methods.: The preventive effect of clusterin on reactive oxygen species (ROS) production and RPE cell death induced by hydrogen peroxide was determined in ARPE-19 cells. The ability of c
The manipulation of droplets is used in a wide range of applications, from lab-on-a-chip devices to bioinspired functional surfaces. Although a variety of droplet manipulation techniques have been proposed, active, fast and reversible manipulation of pure discrete droplets remains elusive due to the technical limitations of previous techniques. Here, we describe a novel technique that enables active, fast, precise and reversible control over the position and motion of a pure discrete droplet wit
Abstract During retinal development, retinal vascularization begins in the inner retinal layer and sprouts radially from the optic nerve to reach the periphery of the retina. Subsequently, retinal vessels sprout into the deep retinal layer to form three parallel of the nerve fiber layer and two plexiform layers. In this process, endothelial cells are closely related to astrocytes and pericytes with strict chronological order. Here, we provide that the recruitment of pericytes and astrocytes to v
Ferrites are promising photoelectrode materials for solar water splitting to produce clean and storable hydrogen energy.
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