Abstract

Poster Presentations

Day 3, June 24（Tue.）　

Room P (Maesato East, Foyer, Ocean Wing)

3P-PM-04
PDF

Anti-inflammatory and Metabolic Regulatory Effects of Ocular-Accumulative Phenolic Compounds in An In Vitro Model of Dry Eye Disease

(¹CEVR, ²PolyU FSN, ³PolyU RiFood, ⁴PolyU RCMI, ⁵Univ. Waterloo)
^oKe Wang^1,2,3, Weipeng Li^2,3, Pui-Kei Lee^2,4, Wenjie Wu^1,4, Ka-Ying Wong^1,5, Man-Sau Wong^1,2,3,4, Danyue Zhao^1,2,3,4

Dry eye disease (DED) is a prevalent ocular disorder characterized by eye dryness and inflammation. Current DED medications focus on inflammation reduction but their efficacy is often limited due to low bioavailability and varying side effects. This study explored the efficacy of ocular-accumulative phenolic compounds, which are widely found in diet, in attenuating dry eye conditions in human corneal epithelial cells (HCECs). To identify the ocular-accumulative phenolic compounds, mice were orally administered to polyphenol-rich herbal extracts, and phenolic metabolites in ocular tissue were analyzed by targeted metabolomics. The therapeutic potential of ocular-accumulative phenolics was assessed via cell viability and anti-inflammatory assays. Moreover, an innovative sample pre-treatment workflow utilizing the enhanced matrix removal (EMR)-lipid µelution technique with markedly reduced sample consumption was applied for integrated metabolomics and lipidomics to gain more mechanistic insight. Results indicate that a few phenolic metabolites, especially urolithins and benzoic acids, were present at varying concentrations in mouse ocular tissues. Notably, urolithin A and 3,4-dihydroxybenzoic acid demonstrated significant anti-inflammatory effects by downregulating interleukin-6 and tumor necrosis factor-alpha. Metabolomics and lipidomics analyses further suggest that these compounds may exert benefits in DED by favorably regulating key metabolic pathways related to anti-inflammatory responses and ocular surface integrity.