The phospholipid concentration in the controls was 1.81 0.12 mg/ml, which decreased to 1 1.05 0.13 mg/ml in patients with MGD (percentage decrease, 42%; 0.001) and showed noticeable improvement after IPL therapy (1.53 0.24 mg/ml) with a percentage decrease of 15.6% ( 0.01). Open in a separate window Figure 4 The concentrations of total lipids, cholesterol, triglycerides, and phospholipids in tear samples from CIL56 the controls, patients before intense pulsed light (IPL) therapy, and patients after IPL therapy. TLC for Phospholipids Figure 5 illustrates the concentrations CIL56 of different polar phospholipids separated by TLC. for phospholipids. Results: Significant CIL56 improvements were observed in tear protein concentrations and molecular weight after IPL therapy. The most pronounced effect was in the molecular weight of tear lysozyme, lactoferrin, and albumin. Tear lipids showed an improvement in the concentrations of total lipids, triglycerides, cholesterol, and phospholipids. On TLC, the tears in patients with MGD had significantly lower amounts of anionic phosphatidylethanolamine, phosphatidylinositol, and phosphatidylserine but amounts zwitterionic neutral phospholipid phosphatidylcholine were normal. These CIL56 anionic phospholipids showed obvious recovery after IPL therapy. Conclusion: IPL therapy is effective in eyes with MGD. It improved tear protein and lipid content and composition. The anionic phospholipids were more responsive to IPL therapy than were the other zwitterionic phospholipids. 0.05 was considered statistically significant. RESULTS Demographic Data The participated subjects (24 subjects) in this study were divided TIAM1 into two groups: (a) control group (12 subject, 50%, 24 eyes) was selected from the work place in our institute and (b) MGD group (12 subject, 50%, 24 eyes). The participants were of 50 10 years of age. There were 58.3% males and 41.7% females for both groups. Total Protein Content Figure 1 illustrates the concentration of tear proteins in the controls, patients before IPL therapy, and patients 2 weeks after therapy. The total protein concentration was 53.65 1.2 mg/ml and 72.13 1.98 mg/ml in controls and patients with MGD, respectively ( 0.001). Two weeks after IPL therapy, tear protein content in the patients showed an obvious improvement with a value of 56.23 2.19 mg/ml, which was comparable to that in the controls ( 0.05). Open in a separate window Figure 1 Total protein content in tear samples from the controls and eyes of patients with Meibomian gland dysfunction (MGD) before treatment with intense pulsed light (IPL). SDS-PAGE The SDS-PAGE scanning patterns of tear proteins of the controls and patients before IPL therapy are illustrated in Figure 2. The control pattern was characterized by nine fractions representing the different tear protein fractions with varying molecular weights, broadening, and intensities. The most obvious fractions in the pattern were those of lysozyme (14 kDa), serum albumin (64 kDa), and lactoferrin (85 kDa). The tear protein pattern of patients with MGD showed decreased intensity of lactoferrin and lysozyme and increased intensity of serum albumin. Moreover, the other protein fractions at 108, 200, and 285 kDa showed increased intensity, and the fraction at 183 kDa shifted towards the low molecular weight region at 161 kDa. The scanning pattern of tear proteins after IPL therapy CIL56 [Figure 3] showed obvious improvement in the lysozyme, serum albumin, lactoferrin, and all other fractions; however, the fraction at 108 kDa shifted to the high molecular weight region at 133 kDa. Open in a separate window Figure 2 Electrophoretic pattern of tear proteins in the controls and patients before treatment with intense pulsed light (IPL). Open in a separate window Figure 3 Electrophoretic pattern of tear proteins in the controls and patients after treatment with intense pulsed light (IPL). Measurement of Lipid Profiles Figure 4 illustrates the change in total lipid, cholesterol, triglyceride, and phospholipid concentrations in the controls, patients before IPL therapy, and patients 2 weeks after therapy. Total tear lipids showed obvious improvement after IPL therapy. The total lipid concentrations were 7.87 0.28, 4.41 0.30 in the controls before IPL therapy ( 0.001), and 6.60 0.38 mg/ml for patients after IPL therapy ( 0.05). Moreover, tear cholesterol concentration was 3.99 0.54 mg/ml in the controls and significantly reduced to 3.27 0.06 ( 0.01) and 3.65 0.05 mg/ml ( 0.05) in patients before and after IPL therapy, respectively, with percentage decreases of 18.11% and 8.41% compared to the controls. Additionally, tear triglyceride concentrations showed remarkable improvement in patients after IPL therapy ( 0.001) compared to pretreatment values. The tear triglyceride values were 2.8 0.16, 2.46 0.23, and 2.65 0.23 mg/ml in the controls, patients before IPL therapy, and patients after therapy, respectively. The phospholipid concentration in the controls was 1.81 0.12 mg/ml, which decreased to 1 1.05 0.13 mg/ml in patients with MGD (percentage decrease, 42%; 0.001) and showed noticeable improvement after IPL therapy (1.53 0.24 mg/ml) with a percentage decrease of 15.6% ( 0.01). Open in a separate window Figure 4 The concentrations of.