Transcriptomic analysis of nanoceria treatment in light-induced retinal degeneration in rat

Retinal neurodegenerative diseases such as Age-related Macular Degeneration (AMD) and Retinitis Pigmentosa cause irreversible vision loss due to the limited regenerative capacity of the mammalian retina. Cerium oxide nanoparticles (nanoceria) are emerging therapeutics against oxidative stress and inflammation, major drivers of photoreceptor degeneration, but their mechanisms remain incompletely understood. We performed retinal transcriptomic analysis in a rat AMD model induced by high-intensity light and treated intravitreally with nanoceria. Six groups were analyzed: control, light damage, vehicle, nanoceria, vehicle + light damage, and nanoceria + light damage. Light damage activated inflammatory and apoptotic programs, with upregulation of cytokines (Tnf, Il6, Il1b, Ccl2) and downregulation of photoreceptor genes (Rho, Pde6a/b, Gnat1). Nanoceria treatment counteracted these effects, suppressing pro-inflammatory mediators, restoring antioxidative genes (Nfe2l2, Gclc, Sod2), and enhancing neuroprotective factors (Bdnf, Cntf, Ngf). Pathway analyses revealed inhibition of TNF/NF-?B/IL-17 signaling and activation of PI3K-Akt, JAK-STAT, and neurotrophin pathways. Unexpectedly, nanoceria also modulated amino acid and insulin metabolism (Ass1, Cps1, Insr, Irs1, Slc2a4) and reactivated transcription factors (Ascl1, Sox2, Notch1) typically silent in adult retina. Our findings highlight nanoceria as a multifunctional therapeutic that mitigates retinal degeneration by coordinating oxidative, inflammatory, and regenerative responses, supporting its translational potential to preserve vision in retinal neurodegenerative disease. Overall design: Six experimental groups were analyzed: control, light damage, vehicle, nanoceria, vehicle + light damage, and nanoceria + light damage (n = 6–7 animals per group). Retinal RNA-seq was performed on Rattus norvegicus (paired-end 150 bp, Illumina NovaSeq 6000). Differential expression and pathway analyses were conducted to assess the impact of nanoceria treatment.