Keratoconus (KC) is a corneal thinning dystrophy that leads to visual impairment. While the cause of KC remains poorly understood, changes in sex hormone levels have been correlated with KC development. This study investigated circulating gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) in control and KC subjects to determine if this master hormone regulator is linked to the KC pathology. Plasma and saliva were collected from KC subjects (n = 227 and n = 274, respectively) and non-KC controls (n = 58 and n = 101, respectively), in concert with patient demographics and clinical features. GnRH levels in both plasma and saliva were significantly lower in KC subjects compared to controls. This finding was retained in plasma when subjects were stratified based on age, sex, and KC severity. Control and KC corneal fibroblasts (HKCs) stimulated with recombinant GnRH protein in vitro revealed significantly increased luteinizing hormone receptor by HKCs and reduced expression of α-smooth muscle actin with treatment suggesting that GnRH may modulate hormonal and fibrotic responses in the KC corneal stroma. Further studies are needed to reveal the role of the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis in the onset and progression of KC and to explore this pathway as a novel therapeutic target.
Keywords: biomarkers; corneal thinning; crosslinking; estrogen; keratoconus; saliva.