Corneal integrity and transparency are indispensable for good vision. Cornea homeostasis is entirely dependent upon corneal stem cells, which are required for complex wound-healing processes that restore corneal integrity following epithelial damage. Here, we found that leucine-rich repeats and immunoglobulin-like domains 1 (LRIG1) is highly expressed in the human holoclone-type corneal epithel...

Laser densitometric analysis of immunoperoxidase stained tissue was used to quantitate class I HLA (HLA-A,B,C) antigen expression by human corneal epithelium. Frozen sections of human donor corneas stored in modified McCarey-Kaufman medium for less than 24 hr were evaluated for class I HLA antigen by an indirect immunoperoxidase technique using a monoclonal antibody reactive against a class I H...

The development of organs with an epithelial parenchyma relies on reciprocal mesenchymal-epithelial communication. Mouse corneal epithelium stratification is the consequence of a coordinated developmental process based on mesenchymal-epithelial interactions. The molecular mechanism underlying these interactions remains unclear. The Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway is involved in fundamental aspe...

Purpose Progenitor cells of the limbal epithelium reside in a discrete area peripheral to the more differentiated corneal epithelium and maintain tissue homeostasis. What regulates the limbal-corneal epithelial boundary is a major unanswered question. Ephrin-A1 ligand is enriched in the limbal epithelium, whereas EphA2 receptor is concentrated in the corneal epithelium. This reciprocal pattern ...

PURPOSE To study the binding characteristics and the expression of platelet-activating factor receptors (PAF-R) in corneal epithelium to elucidate the site of action of PAF. METHODS Binding of [3H]PAF was investigated in subcellular fractions of the epithelia of bovine corneas and in membranes from cultured rabbit corneal epithelial cells. Dose-response inhibition curves of [3H]PAF-specific b...

BACKGROUND Epigenetic factors, such as microRNAs, are important regulators in the self-renewal and differentiation of stem cells and progenies. Here we investigated the microRNAs expressed in human limbal-peripheral corneal (LPC) epithelia containing corneal epithelial progenitor cells (CEPCs) and early transit amplifying cells, and their role in corneal epithelium. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FIND...

PURPOSE To report the cytopathological features of corneal intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN) through the investigation of cytokeratin expression pattern, keratinization, cell proliferation, apoptosis, and epithelial mesenchymal transition. PATIENT AND METHODS Corneal tissue excised from a CIN patient was examined in this study. Cryosections of the excised CIN epithelial tissue were examined by ...

PURPOSE In low-risk eyes of mice, most of the composite corneal grafts composed of syngeneic epithelium layered on allogeneic stroma and endothelium are accepted indefinitely. The study was undertaken to determine the fate of similar composite corneal grafts placed in high-risk mouse eyes. METHODS Epithelium-deprived allogeneic corneas (C57BL/6) were reconstituted in vitro with BALB/c epithel...

Past attempts to grow human corneal epithelium in culture had limited success, with confluence rarely attained. This work is to determine whether different areas of human corneal epithelium grow better in tissue culture. We compared the extent, the mitotic rates, and morphology of outgrowths and histology of explants from central and peripheral human corneas in culture. Explants, 2 mm in diamet...

PURPOSE To evaluate acute corneal epithelial toxicity induced by benzalkonium chloride (BAC) homologs with different alkyl chain lengths using an in vivo electrophysiological method. METHODS BAC homologs with C12, C14, and C16 alkyl chain lengths were used at concentrations of 0.0025%, 0.005%, and 0.01%, respectively. Cytotoxicity of BAC homologs on the normal rabbit corneal epithelial cells ...