95% of researchers rate our articles as excellent or good
Learn more about the work of our research integrity team to safeguard the quality of each article we publish.
Find out more
ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Med.
Sec. Ophthalmology
Volume 12 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fmed.2025.1503527
Elevated thiamine level is associated with activating interaction between HIF-1α and SLC19A3 in experimental myopic guinea pigs
Provisionally accepted
Zhongyu Ma 1 Jiawen Hao 1 Zhaohui Yang 1 Miao Zhang 1
Rui Xue Zhang 1 Jizhao Xin 1 Bo Bao 1 Xuewei Yin 2 Hongsheng Bi 2
Dadong Guo 2,3*- 1 Shandong University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Jinan, China
- 2 Affiliated Eye Hospital of Shandong University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Jinan, Shandong Province, China
- 3 Shandong Academy of Eye Disease Prevention and Therapy, Jinan, Shandong Province, China
The SLC19 gene family comprises three structurally similar solute carriers, with SLC19A2/A3 mediating thiamine transport. HIF-1α, a hypoxia-activated transcription factor, is implicated in myopia pathogenesis through choroidal hypoxia mechanisms. This study investigated thiamine dynamics in choroidal tissue of guinea pigs with lens-induced myopia (LIM). The right eyes in the LIM group wore -6.0D lenses for 2-6 weeks. Ocular parameters and choroidal thickness were measured alongside qPCR/Western blot analysis of SLC19A2/A3 and HIF-1α expression. ELISA quantified thiamine levels, while histology assessed structural changes. Protein interaction studies included immunoprecipitation and molecular docking. Results: Compared with the normal control (NC) group, the LIM group guinea pigs showed a significant increase in axial length and decrease in refraction, as well as a thinning of choroidal thickness and loosening of tissue structure. In addition, the expression of SLC19A3 was higher than that of the NC group at 2 and 4 weeks, SLC19A2 was higher than that of the NC group at 4 weeks, and HIF-1α was higher than that of the NC group at 2, 4, and 6 weeks. HIF-1α physically interacted with SLC19A3 via predicted binding domains. These findings suggest hypoxia-driven thiamine regulation through HIF-1α/SLC19A3 axis represents an adaptive mechanism in myopic choroid. Thiamine metabolism emerges as a potential therapeutic target, providing new insights into myopia pathogenesis and treatment strategies.
Keywords: experimental myopia, Choroid, Thiamine, SLC19A3, HIF-1α
Received: 04 Oct 2024; Accepted: 07 Apr 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Ma, Hao, Yang, Zhang, Zhang, Xin, Bao, Yin, Bi and Guo. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence:
Dadong Guo, Affiliated Eye Hospital of Shandong University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Jinan, Shandong Province, China
Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.