Abstracto

Biomarkers discovery for glaucoma: Future challenges and opportunities

San Arrie

Biomarkers provide a powerful and dynamic approach to improve our understanding of the mechanisms underlying ocular diseases with applications in diagnosis, disease modulation or for predicting and monitoring of clinical response to treatment. Defined as measurable indicator of normal or pathological processes, biomarker evaluation has been used extensively in drug development within clinical settings to better comprehend effectiveness of treatment in glaucoma diseases. Biomarkers can change qualitatively (mutation/s) or quantitatively (expression level). An ultimate goal is the application of such information for diagnostic and potentially even for screening purposes. New technologies such as disease proteomics and transcriptomics open new perspectives for the development of rapid molecular diagnostics and follow-up in glaucoma. This article describes the usage of biomarkers with respect to commonly sampled glaucoma in clinic: Primary Open Angle Glaucoma, Angle Closure Glaucoma, Normal Tension Glaucoma, and Secondary Glaucoma.