ArticleInvestigative ophthalmology & visual science2026
Exosome-Associated Gene Network and the Role of SPP1 in Herpes Stromal Keratitis and the Therapeutic Modulation by Ursolic Acid.
Article in Investigative ophthalmology & visual science, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
0 citing papers in PubMed.
No citing paper in PubMed yet.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
10 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Purpose: This study aimed to explore the exosome-related gene network in herpes stromal keratitis (HSK) and to identify key molecular drivers, focusing on the role of secreted phosphoprotein 1 (SPP1) and investigating the therapeutic potential of ursolic acid (UA). Methods: Transcriptomic RNA sequencing was performed on corneal tissues from herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1)-infected mice. Bioinformatics analyses included identification of differentially expressed genes (DEGs), immune cell infiltration assessment, exosome-related gene network construction, functional enrichment analyses, and compound-gene network creation. Immune infiltration findings were further validated using single-cell RNA sequencing and flow cytometry. Key findings were validated in a mouse HSK model using quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR), western blot, and immunohistochemistry. The therapeutic effect and mechanism of UA were investigated through subconjunctival administration, with subsequent evaluation of corneal lesions, angiogenesis, fibrosis, and key signaling pathways. Results: Through analysis, 222 DEGs associated with exosomes were identified in HSK, and the exosome-related gene network revealed that the primary functional cluster was centered on the positive regulation of cell adhesion. Among the genes in the primary functional cluster, SPP1 emerged as a hub gene, demonstrating significant upregulation that correlated with clinical progression. SPP1 expression exhibited a shift from corneal epithelial cells under normal conditions to infiltrating immune cells, particularly neutrophils and monocytes, during HSK. In a mouse model, treatment with UA significantly reduced corneal opacity, vessel in-growth, and inflammatory cell infiltration. Mechanistically, UA downregulated SPP1 expression and subsequently inhibited the activation of the phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K)/Akt signaling pathway. Conclusions: These findings provide new insights into the exosome-related gene network and the mechanisms of HSK, while identifying UA as a promising candidate for therapeutic development.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What Socratic holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.