A Dietary Supplement in Treatment of Glaucoma

Mitochondria are the energy factories of cells. The mitochondria of RGCs lose function with age, probably due to age-related loss of nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD+), an enzyme cofactor needed for energy production, making the cells more susceptible to damage. The goal of this study is to test whether systemic delivery of the NAD+ precursor nicotinamide riboside, a dietary supplement, increases retinal NAD+ and protects RGCs in glaucoma models.

The mitochondria of retinal ganglion cells lose function with age, probably due to age-related loss of nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD+), an enzyme cofactor needed for energy production. The cells thus become more susceptible to damage from, for instance, elevated pressure in the eye, a common risk factor for glaucoma. We propose to test whether systemic delivery of the NAD+ precursor nicotinamide riboside, a dietary supplement, increases retinal NAD+ and protects retinal ganglion cells in mouse models of glaucoma.