Multi-omics profiling of retinal pigment epithelium reveals enhancer-driven activation of RANK-NFATc1 signaling in traumatic proliferative vitreoretinopathy [ChIP-seq]

During the progression of proliferative vitreoretinopathy (PVR) following ocular trauma, previously quiescent retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) transition into a state of rapid proliferation, migration, and secretion. The elusive molecular mechanisms behind these changes have hindered the development of effective pharmacological treatments, presenting a pressing clinical challenge. In this study, by monitoring the dynamic changes in chromatin accessibility and various histone modifications, we charted the comprehensive epigenetic landscape of RPE in traumatic PVR. Coupled with transcriptomic analysis, we reveled a robust correlation between enhancer activation and the upregulation of the PVR-associated gene programs. Furthermore, by constructing transcription factor regulatory networks, we identified the aberrant activation of enhancer-driven RANK-NFATc1 pathway as PVR advanced. Importantly, we demonstrated that intraocular interventions, including nanomedicines inhibiting enhancer activity, gene therapies targeting NFATc1 and antibody therapeutics against RANK pathway, effectively mitigate PVR progression. Together, our findings elucidate the epigenetic basis underlying the activation of PVR-associated genes during RPE cell fate transitions and offer promising therapeutic avenues targeting epigenetic modulation and the RANK-NFATc1 axis for PVR management.