Identification and Localization of Alpha-Synuclein in Human Cornea

Dear Editor Alpha‐synuclein is a widespread neuronal presynaptic protein found predominantly in the central nervous system, and it is an element of the neuropathological features of several neurodegenerative disorders including the dementia with Lewy bodies and the Parkinson’s disease. At the extra‐ neural tissue, the normal distribution and functions of α‐ synuclein remain especially elusive. Though there was one report that described the absence of α‐synuclein in human cornea using the Western blots, we had access to data from immunohistochemical staining with fluorescence indicating high immunoreactivity of α‐synuclein in human corneal epithelium and endothelium. Our results are consistent with the expression of α‐synuclein in the normal human cornea. The presence of α‐synuclein in normal human cornea suggests that this molecule is widely distributed and functions in mammalian extra‐neural tissue.