Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 15, 2025
Murine Corneal Transplantation: A Model to Study the Most Common Form of Solid Organ Transplantation
Published on: November 17, 2014
A Novel Murine Model of Endothelial Keratoplasty
Hayate Nakagawa1, Tomas Blanco, Francesca Kahale
1Laboratory of Corneal Immunology, Transplantation and Regeneration, Schepens Eye Research Institute, Massachusetts Eye and Ear, Department of Ophthalmology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA.
Purpose:
The purpose of this study was to establish a murine model of endothelial keratoplasty.
Methods:
Endothelial keratoplasty (EK) was performed using C57BL/6 donor and BALB/c recipient mice. The central endothelium and Descemet membrane were removed from the recipient cornea, and a 1.5-mm posterior lamellar donor graft was made adherent to the recipient cornea with a small amount of viscoelastic. Mice were followed through slitlamp microscopy postoperatively, and OCT was used to assess the cornea and anterior chamber and measure central corneal thickness. Histology and immunohistochemistry were performed to confirm graft adherence and endothelial cell morphology.
Results:
Successfully attached EK grafts were visualized in all transplanted animals. Histology and immunostaining confirmed proper graft orientation and adherence, as well as the presence of donor endothelium on transplanted grafts. We observed maximal corneal edema in all animals at day 1 postoperatively which gradually subsided. EK graft survival was 97% at 8 weeks.
Conclusions:
In this study, we describe a novel murine model for EK which we anticipate will enable detailed investigation into the cellular and molecular mechanisms involved in EK pathobiology.
