OPTN,also named as FIP2,GLC1E,HIP7,HYPL and NRP,plays a neuroprotective role in the eye and optic nerve. It is probably part of the TNF-alpha signaling pathway that can shift the equilibrium toward induction of cell death. OPTN may act by regulating membrane trafficking and cellular morphogenesis via a complex that contains Rab8 and hungtingtin (HD). OPTN may constitute a cellular target for adenovirus E3 14.7,an inhibitor of TNF-alpha functions,thereby affecting cell death. Defects in OPTN are the cause of primary open angle glaucoma type 1E (GLC1E). Defects in OPTN are a cause of susceptibility to normal pressure glaucoma (NPG). OPTN mutated in adult-onset primary open angle glaucoma. It supports the protective role of OPTN in the trabecular meshwork.