We previously reported that EP3, a subtype of prostaglandin E2 receptors, negatively regulates eosinophilic infiltration in murine experimental allergic conjunctivitis induced by TLR3, which causes reduced eosinophilic conjunctival inflammation in TLR3/EP3 double knockout (DKO) mice although in EP3-KO mice eosinophilic conjunctival inflammation is pronounced. We also documented that in human co...

BACKGROUND To investigate the incidence, risk factors and survival of conjunctival acute graft-versus-host disease (aGVHD) in adult patients undergoing allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT). METHODS This retrospective study included a total of 139 patients undergoing allogeneic HSCT between January 2012 and December 2014 at a tertiary referral hospital. Patients with ocula...

BACKGROUND In our earlier genome-wide association study on Stevens-Johnson Syndrome (SJS) and its severe variant, toxic epidermal necrolysis (TEN), we found that in Japanese patients with these severe ocular surface complications there was an association with prostaglandin E receptor 3 (EP3) gene (PTGER3) polymorphisms. We also reported that EP3 is dominantly expressed in the ocular surface-, e...

PURPOSE In the field of ophthalmology, the conjunctival autograft is a useful therapeutic material in many cases, but the small size of the autograft is a disadvantage. Therefore, we evaluated the feasibility of taking an expanded sample of conjunctival tissue using a subtenon's silicone implant. MATERIALS AND METHODS We included a total of nine rabbits; eight rabbits were operative cases, an...

PURPOSE Conjunctival infection with non-chlamydial bacteria may play an important role in the progression of trachoma, especially with regard to the development of corneal opacity and blindness. To further characterize the microbiological profile of bacterial conjunctival infections in cicatricial trachoma, a conjunctival swabbing of adults in rural Ethiopia was performed. METHODS In a cross-...

BACKGROUND Conjunctival myxoma is a type of rare, benign tumor of mesenchymal cells, with fewer than 30 reported cases in the English literature. It is mostly an isolated occurrence but can sometimes be associated with systemic diseases such as Carney complex or Zollinger-Ellison syndrome. It is necessary in clinical practice to differentiate it from other similar lesions, such as amelanotic ne...

PURPOSE To investigate the presence of epithelial sodium channels (ENaC) in rabbit and human conjunctival epithelium and to test the effects of topical amiloride, a potassium-sparing diuretic that blocks the ENaC, on tear quantity in rabbits. METHODS Both healthy normal human and rabbit conjunctival tissues underwent immunohistochemistry staining for ENaC-α and γ subunits as well as for rever...

OBJECTIVE To evaluate primary cultures from human conjunctiva supplemented with fetal bovine serum, autologous serum, and platelet-rich autologous serum, over human amniotic membrane and lens anterior capsules. METHODS One-hundred and forty-eight human conjunctiva explants were cultured in CnT50(®) supplemented with 1, 2.5, 5 and 10% fetal bovine serum, autologous serum and platelet-rich auto...

An asymptomatic fungal cyst of a conjunctival infection was found and removed by biopsy in a young shepherdess. Histopathologic evaluations of the excised tissue specimen from the lesion of the conjunctiva demonstrated an epithelium lined cavity containing a tangled mycelial mass that was surrounded by inflammatory cells and the fungus was identified as Bipolaris spicifera. It is concluded that...

PURPOSE To compare various techniques of pterygium surgery including bare sclera, intraoperative mitomycin C application, conjunctival flap reconstruction, and conjunctival autografting technique. METHODS This study is designed to compare 4 currently used techniques in order to determine the complication and recurrence rates after pterygium exision. Included in the study were 77 eyes from 60 ...