α-1 antitrypsin is promising for the identification of glaucoma severity and is associated with glaucomatous neural damage

Aim: To investigate the association between plasma AAT level and glaucoma. Methods: 163 glaucoma patients and 111 healthy controls were recruited. The plasma AAT levels were measured by ELISA. Results: Plasma AAT level was significantly higher in glaucoma patients than those in healthy controls (p < 0.001). Patients with higher plasma AAT level exhibited severer disease stage (early vs. severe: p < 0.05; H-P-A; early vs. severe: p < 0.05; early vs. end-stage: p < 0.01; AGIS). ROC curves yielded that AAT can distinguish patients with early glaucoma from those with advanced glaucoma (early vs. severe: AUC: 0.616; H-P-A; early vs. severe: AUC: 0.763; early vs. end-stage: AUC: 0.660; AGIS). Conclusion: Plasma AAT is a useful biomarker for the identification of glaucoma severity.