Curcumin (diferuloylmethane) derived from the rhizome of Curcuma longa L. has been used for thousands of years in traditional Chinese medicine and Ayurvedic medicine in Asian countries to treat liver diseases, rheumatoid diseases, diabetes, atherosclerosis, infectious diseases and cancer. It exhibits a wide range of pharmacological properties, which include antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antimutagenic, antimicrobial and anticancer activity. Herein the mechanisms of curcumin impact on oxidative stress, angiogenesis and inflammatory processes are described indicating that curcumin use may inhibit those pathological conditions and restore body homeostasis. Its effectiveness was also proved for major eye diseases. In this review, the influence of curcumin on eye diseases, such as glaucoma, cataract, age-related macular degeneration, diabetic retinopathy, corneal neovascularization, corneal wound healing, dry eye disease, conjunctivitis, pterygium, anterior uveitis are reported. The analysis of a number of clinical and preclinical investigations indicates that curcumin may be used as a therapeutic agent in the treatment of various eye disorders.

The increasing understanding of immune mechanisms changed our perception of the ocular surface, which is now considered a compartment of the common mucosal immune system. It offered the possibility to alter the physiological immune response on the ocular surface and effectively combat inflammation, which impairs stability of the tear film and causes tear hyperosmolarity, causing symptoms of dry eye disease. The paper provides an overview of ocular surface anatomy and physiology, explains the underlying mechanisms of dry eye disease and discusses novel and promising treatment modalities, such as cyclosporine A, biological therapies using autologous serum and various growth factors as well as experimental treatment methods which are currently being investigated.

IntroductionTwo human-specific Demodex species have been described: Demodex folliculorum and Demodex brevis. A medical condition caused by the presence of Demodex is called demodicosis.Material and methodsThe study material comprised eyelashes collected from 1499 patients.Results Demodex sp. infection was revealed in 47% of patients (487 women and 216 men). We determined the following rates of infection by age groups: 1–25 (8% of infected subjects), 26–40 (36%), 41–55 (50%), 56–70 (67%), over 70 (77%). The sex of the subjects was not identified as a factor conducive to infection (p = 0.108), while their age was positively correlated with the risk of infection (p < 0.005). The 1499 study subjects included patients with blepharitis, rosacea, and rheumatoid arthritis. The study investigated the extent to which the above-mentioned conditions affect the risk of Demodex infection. Applying the method of logistic regression, the infection probability was estimated, depending on the age, sex, and comorbidities such as blepharitis, rosacea, and rheumatoid arthritis. Patients suffering from blepharitis were found to have a nearly 2.5-fold higher risk of Demodex infection than those without blepharitis, and the risk for rosacea patients was determined as three-fold higher than that of the general population.ConclusionsBlepharitis and rosacea are risk factors for Demodex infection.

Chronic wounds are a significant socio-economic problem, thus, the improvement of the effectiveness of their treatment is an important objective for public health strategies. The predominant stage of the chronic wound is the inflammatory reaction which is associated with the damage of tissues, possibly due to the excessive secretion and activation of matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs). Several reports have suggested that amnion dressing inhibits tissue destruction and accelerates wound healing. Our recent study revealed that sterilized amnion stimulates keratinocyte proliferation in vitro, while the present study focused on the clinical application of radiation-sterilized amnion in chronic venous leg ulcers and aimed to explain the possible mechanism of its in vivo action. The study involved 25 individuals suffering from venous leg ulceration with a surface area of 10-100 cm2 and a healing rate below 10% per week, as verified during a 2-week screening period. The effectiveness of the amnion dressing was estimated following 4 weeks of treatment. The wound assessment, based on a modified Bates-Jensen Questionnaire, revealed a good and satisfactory response to the treatment in 23 of the 25 patients. The measurement of MMP-2 and MMP-9 activities in wound exudates revealed a decrease in activity in response to amnion application. This effect resulted from the presence of the potent MMP inhibitors, tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinases-1 (TIMP-1), type-1 plasminogen activator inhibitor (PAI-1) and thrombospondin-1 (TSP-1) in the amnion dressings, as shown by real-time fluorescence zymography and protein microarrays. Thus, unlike modern synthetic dressing materials, radiation-sterilized amnion dressings may have a multidirectional beneficial effect on chronic wounds.

Co-operation of the endogenous and exogenous defense system maintains redox homeostasis and is essential for health. The endogenous defense system includes enzymatic (e.g. superoxide dismutase, catalase) and non-enzymatic, low molecular-weight scavengers (e.g. glutathione, ascorbic acid). Pathogenesis of many serious diseases (e.g. cancer, ischemic heart disease) includes oxidative stress which can disturb angiogenesis, the process of formation of new blood vessels sprouting from the existing one. Antioxidants, through reduction of oxidative stress and influence on neovascularization, may modulate progress and results of therapy in those diseases where such processes play an important role. Herein the impact of exogenous antioxidants on angiogenesis and factors modulating this process is presented. Most synthetic antioxidants whose activity has been described (namely N-acetylcysteine, pentoxifylline, synthetic analogue of curcumin, synthetic analogue of epigallocatechin-3 gallate [EGCG], tripertenoids) exert an inhibitory effect on neovascularization. A similar effect was also exhibited by several natural origin antioxidants (e.g. resveratrol, EGCG), which suggests that their application in therapy might normalize excessive angiogenesis. Some natural origin antioxidants e.g. purple coneflower and preparations consisting of natural antioxidants such as Padma 28 and Immunal forte increase a too low baseline level of angiogenesis and decreases a too high level. These preparations exert a regulatory effect on and may normalize neovascularization. They can be used in the case of diseases associated with too low or too high angiogenesis.