Effects of fenofibrate on inflammatory cytokines in diabetic retinopathy patients

The role of cytokines in diabetic retinopathy (DR) and effects of fenofibrate on cytokines were explored by observing changes in serum IL-1β, TNF-α, VEGF, and Lp-PLA2 in different stages of DR and the intervention effect of oral fenofibrate on cytokines. In total, 190 patients with type 2 DR were enrolled and divided into 3 groups: diabetic without retinopathy (NDR) group (n = 30), nonproliferative diabetic retinopathy (NPDR) group (n = 80), and proliferative diabetic retinopathy (PDR) group (n = 80). According to whether or not to accept fenofibrate treatment, NPDR and PDR groups were further divided into the NPDR control (NPDR1) group (n = 40) and the NPDR treatment (NPDR2) group (n = 40), and the proliferative diabetic retinopathy control (PDR1, n = 40) group and the proliferative diabetic retinopathy treatment (PDR2) group (n = 40). At 12 weeks after fenofibrate treatment, serum IL-1β, TNF-α, VEGF, and Lp-PLA2 levels were detected. In PDR and NPDR patients, levels of serum cytokines such as IL-1β (120.56 ± 27.32 pg/mL vs 112.34 ± 19.45 pg/mL vs 82.9 ± 13.8 pg/mL), TNF-α (125.86 ± 25.57 pg/mL vs 109.48 ± 20.15 pg/mL vs 80.7 ± 12.8 pg/mL), VEGF (166.65 ± 37.74 pg/mL vs 148.54 ± 36.27 pg/mL vs 88.97 ± 24.86 pg/mL), and Lp-PLA2 (172.34 ± 45.22 μg/L vs 154.66 ± 40.98 μg/L vs 125.88 ± 38.87 μg/L) were significantly higher than in diabetes patients without retinopathy. After fenofibrate treatment, serum IL-1β, TNF-α, VEGF, and Lp-PLA2 significantly decreased in NPDR and PDR patients. Serum IL-1β, TNF-α, VEGF, and Lp-PLA2 play an important role in occurrence and development of diabetic retinopathy. Fenofibrate can reduce cytokine levels in DR patients and improve inflammatory response.