Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40614852›Full record

ReviewExperimental eye research2025

Investigating prolactin-induced protein and its role in modulating the metabolic state of the keratoconus microenvironment.

Wentao Liang, Brenda Vasini, Joseph Clayton, Jian-Xing Ma, Dimitrios Karamichos

Abstract readReview
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Review in Experimental eye research, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
3citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

3 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Update on the Physiopathology of Keratoconus.Medical sciences (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026
    Review
  2. Sex Hormones and Keratoconus: In Search of the Link.Journal of clinical medicine · 2026
    Article
  3. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

5 authors.

Wentao LiangDepartment of Biochemistry, Wake Forest University School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, NC, 27101, USA.
Brenda VasiniNorth Texas Eye Research Institute, University of North Texas Health Science Center, Fort Worth, TX, 76107, USA; Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of North Texas Health Science Center, Fort Worth, TX, 76107, USA.
Joseph ClaytonDepartment of Biochemistry, Wake Forest University School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, NC, 27101, USA; College of Medicine, University of Tennessee Health Science Center, Memphis, TN, 27127, USA.
Jian-Xing MaDepartment of Biochemistry, Wake Forest University School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, NC, 27101, USA.
Dimitrios KaramichosNorth Texas Eye Research Institute, University of North Texas Health Science Center, Fort Worth, TX, 76107, USA; Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of North Texas Health Science Center, Fort Worth, TX, 76107, USA; Department of Pharmacology and Neuroscience, University of North Texas Health Science Center, Fort Worth, TX, 76107, USA. Electronic address: dimitrios.karamichos@unthsc.edu.

Funding

A new pathogenic mechanism for diabetic retinopathyR01EY019309 · NEI · WAKE FOREST UNIVERSITY HEALTH SCIENCES · PI Jian-Xing Jay Ma · 2009 to 2026
$6.1M
Sustained release of fenofibrate for the treatment of diabetic retinopathyR01EY033477 · NEI · VIRGINIA COMMONWEALTH UNIVERSITY · PI Jian-Xing Jay Ma, QINGGUO XU · 2022 to 2026
$2.7M
Dysregulation of PPARα in RPE degenerationR01EY034510 · NEI · WAKE FOREST UNIVERSITY HEALTH SCIENCES · PI Jian-Xing Jay Ma, Yusuke Takahashi · 2023 to 2026
$2.1M
cGAS-STING signaling in diabetic retinopathyR01EY033330 · NEI · WAKE FOREST UNIVERSITY HEALTH SCIENCES · PI Jian-Xing Jay Ma, Yusuke Takahashi · 2022 to 2026
$1.9M
Dysregulation of Wnt signaling in subretinal fibrosis in AMDR01EY032931 · NEI · WAKE FOREST UNIVERSITY HEALTH SCIENCES · PI TAKAHASHI, YUSUKE · 2021 to 2025
$1.9M
Studies of retinyl ester hydrolase in the visual cycleR01EY032930 · NEI · WAKE FOREST UNIVERSITY HEALTH SCIENCES · PI MA, JIAN-XING JAY, MOISEYEV, GENNADIY · 2021 to 2025
$1.9M
Metabolic reprogramming of endothelial precursor cells in subretinal fibrosisR01EY034742 · NEI · UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS HLTH SCI CTR HOUSTON · PI JIYANG CAI, Jian-Xing Jay Ma · 2023 to 2026
$1.8M
Choroidal Gamma Delta T Cells as Novel Regulators of RPE DegenerationR01EY028773 · NEI · UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS MED BR GALVESTON · PI CAI, JIYANG · 2018 to 2021
$1.8M
The Intimate Interplay Between Keratoconus, Sex Hormones, and the Anterior PituitaryR01EY035510 · NEI · UNIVERSITY OF NORTH TEXAS HLTH SCI CTR · PI Dimitrios Karamichos · 2023 to 2026
$1.6M
The role of extracellular vesicles in keratoconus pathogenesisR21EY034714 · NEI · UNIVERSITY OF NORTH TEXAS HLTH SCI CTR · PI KARAMICHOS, DIMITRIOS · 2023 to 2024
$407k
NEI NIH HHS R01 EY019309NEI NIH HHS R01 EY028773NEI NIH HHS R01 EY032930NEI NIH HHS R01 EY032931NEI NIH HHS R01 EY033330NEI NIH HHS R01 EY033477NEI NIH HHS R01 EY034510NEI NIH HHS R01 EY034742NEI NIH HHS R01 EY035510NEI NIH HHS R21 EY034714
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Keratoconus (KC) is a progressive corneal disorder characterized by thinning and irregular astigmatism, leading to visual impairment. This study investigates the role of Prolactin-Induced Protein (PIP), a 17-kDa glycoprotein significantly downregulated in KC subjects, in modulating corneal cellular metabolism. Using human corneal fibroblasts from healthy (HCFs) and KC (HKCs) subjects, we assessed the effects of exogenous PIP (50-500 ng/mL) via targeted mass spectrometry and Seahorse bioenergetic analyses. Metabolomic profiling revealed that PIP significantly modulates various metabolites involved in multiple bioenergetic and oxidative stress related pathways including the Warburg effect and thiamine metabolism. Seahorse analysis revealed that when compared to HCFs, HKCs exhibit impaired ATP production from both oxidative phosphorylation and glycolysis. Notably, PIP treatment reversed this impairment and selectively enhanced mitochondrial function and glycolysis in HKCs without affecting HCFs. This study provides the first evidence of PIP's role in regulating energy metabolism in KC, suggesting its potential as a therapeutic target for addressing the metabolic dysfunction underlying KC pathogenesis.

Indexed as

CorneaEnergy MetabolismFibroblastsGlycoproteinsKeratoconusAdultCells, CulturedFemaleGlycolysisHumansMaleMembrane Transport ProteinsMitochondriaOxidative PhosphorylationOxidative StressGlycoproteinsMembrane Transport ProteinsPIP protein, humanGlycolytic rate assayKeratoconusMetabolomic analysisMitochondrial stress assayPIPSeahorse assay

Identifiers

PMID40614852
PMCPMC12871044

What OpenQuestion holds

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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.