AIM: To investigate the expression of vascular endothelial growth factor(VEGF)and chemokine receptor 3(CCR3)in pterygium.

METHODS: The expression of VEGF and CCR3 were detected in 18 patients(18 eyes)with pterygium and compared with the normal conjunctiva epithelium in other 14 cases(14 eyes). The histological differences between the two groups were compared by hematoxylin and eosin(HE)staining. The expression of VEGF and CCR3 in pterygium and normal conjunctival tissues were analyzed by immunofluorescence and immunohistochemical. The mRNA expression of VEGF and CCR3 were assessed by Real-time PCR.

RESULTS: Compared with normal conjunctival tissue, the epithelial layer of pterygium was obvious thickening, the stromal layer was more disordered, and the expression levels of VEGF(0.69±0.0875 vs 0.05±0.0024)and CCR3(0.45±0.0248 vs 0.03±0.0074)were significantly elevated(all P<0.01). The expression level of VEGF mRNA in pterygium was about 12 times that of normal conjunctival tissue(12.33±2.84 vs 1.00±0.08), and the expression level of CCR3 mRNA was about 160 times as many as conjunctival tissue(159.60±34.15 vs 1.00±0.09).

CONCLUSION: The expression of VEGF and CCR3 in pterygium was significantly increased, suggesting that they may be involved in the occurrence of pterygium and promote the development of the disease.