Leveraging Nuclear Receptors as Targets for Pathological Ocular Vascular Diseases

Vasculogenesis and angiogenesis are physiological mechanisms occurring throughout the body. Any disruption to the precise balance of blood vessel growth necessary to support healthy tissue, and the inhibition of abnormal vessel sprouting has the potential to negatively impact stages of development and/or healing. Therefore, the identification of key regulators of these vascular processes is critical to identifying therapeutic means by which to target vascular-associated compromises and complications. Nuclear receptors are a family of transcription factors that have been shown to be involved in modulating different aspects of vascular biology in many tissues systems. Most recently, the role of nuclear receptors in ocular biology and vasculopathies has garnered interest. Herein, we review studies that have used in vitro assays and in vivo models to investigate nuclear receptor-driven pathways in two ocular vascular diseases associated with blindness, wet or exudative age-related macular degeneration, and proliferative diabetic retinopathy. The potential therapeutic targeting of nuclear receptors for ocular diseases is also discussed.