[Animal experiment model of keratomycosis]

A model of experimental keratomycosis in the rabbit eye is described. Candida albicans strain DSM 70010 (10 microliters; 2.5 X 10(5) cells) is injected intracorneally without employing immunosuppressive measures. This strain is characterized by marked germ-tube formation, which apparently is a major cause of its virulence. All 17 eyes developed an infiltration of the cornea two days after injection. On Day 6 (mean value; standard error +/- 2.34 days) this infiltration developed synchronously to a severe corneal ulcer with hypopyon. The infection remained active for about two weeks and was either complicated by a descemetocele or perforation or led to a reparatory stage with extensive vascularization and successive leukoma. The model presented is reproducible for the first time and is therefore recommended for experimental evaluation of new therapeutic concepts.