Changes in Gene expression mediated by Cyclic Mechanical Stress in Trabecular Meshwork Cells

Purpose: To investigate the changes in gene expression induced by cyclic mechanical stress (CMS) in trabecular meshwork (TM) cells. Methods: HTM cultures from three donors were plated on type I collagen-coated flexible silicone bottom plates and subjected to 15% stretching, 1 cycle per second for 6 hours. Non-stressed parallel control cultures were incubated under the same conditions in the absence of CMS. Total RNA from each culture was amplified (1 round amplification) and hybridized to Operon Human Oligo Arrays version 3.0 (35K). Control used was Universal Reference Human RNA from Stratagene. Differences in gene expression induced by CMS were analyzed using Genespring 7.2.