Connective tissue fibre production in keratoconus

In a histochemical and electron microscopic study of 45 cases of keratoconus, oxytalan fibres, a member of the elastic fibre family, were found in the extracellular tissues of the cornea. Oxytalan fibres were identified beneath the epithelium over the thinned central region of the conical cornea as well as in areas of stromal scarring. In a number of instances the apparently thickened Descemet's membrane was shown to include an oxytalan-containing retro-corneal layer. Oxytalan fibres were found to be immunostained by antibodies raised against collagen type VI.