Bioinorganic Markers of a Loss of the Crystalline Lens Capsule Barrier Properties and Consequent Age-Related Cataract Development

Abstract

The age-related cataract development consequent upon a loss of the lens capsule barrier properties proved to be associated with accumulation of sodium, calcium, phosphorus and potassium. For the first time the use of spatial cluster and correlation analyses showed that the physical light scattering in the crystalline lens volume depends on changes in the lens matter elemental composition. The fields of elevated concentrations of sodium, calcium, phosphorus, potassium and chlorine conformed to the lens capsule geometry and their clustering was similar to that of opacity fields in the lens body. The accumulation geometry of the elements in the lens body that are commonly seen in the aqueous humor of the anterior chamber, can be considered evidence for excessive transitioning of their compounds through the lens capsule shell, while its spatial connection with transparency changes—proof of participation in cataractogenesis.