Biopharmaceutical test of ocular irritation in the mouse

A simple and accurate test for ocular irritation in mice has been developed in which the subjective evaluation of intolerance is supplemented by an objective measurement, based on the change in corneal permeability following ocular damage. An episcopic microscope is used to detect, under blue light, the amount of fluorescein that diffuses across the inflamed or damaged cornea. The fluorescence emitted by this fluorochrome is quantified by a photomultiplier. The degree of ocular damage is expressed as a fluorescence index which can be subjected to statistical analysis. In a first stage of this study a series of surfactants has been examined and classified on the basis of their fluorescence index. The classification thus obtained is in agreement with those previously reported in the literature for assessment of ocular irritation by other methods.