Targeting death receptor induced apoptosis and necroptosis: a novel therapeutic strategy to prevent neuronal damage in retinal detachment.

Retinal detachment (RD) is a common cause of human visual impairment. Detachment of photoreceptors from the retinal pigment epithelium causes photoreceptor loss and subsequent vision decline. Death receptor (DR)-induced apoptosis play critical role in activating apoptosis in photoreceptor cells. Z-VAD-FMK inhibits the DR-induced retinal neuronal apoptosis but promotes neuronal death through necroptosis pathway, an alternative programmed cell death, which can be inhibited by Nec-1. Thus, we may achieve a better result by simultaneous inhibition of DR-induced apoptosis and necroptosis, which provides us with a new direction in the treatment of RD.