Lopez Andrew L, Dehshiri Mohammad, Schill Alexander W, Aglyamov Salavat, Larin Kirill
Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Houston, Houston, Texas, USA.
Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Houston, Houston, Texas, USA.
J Biophotonics. 2024 Dec 2:e202400331. doi: 10.1002/jbio.202400331.
The cornea is a transparent lens at the forefront of the eye, serving as a structural barrier that protects the eye and provides the majority of the eye's refractive power. In this study, we utilized the postnatal mouse eye to characterize corneal structure and biomechanics. Between postnatal day (PN) 6 and PN24, we observed that elastic wave speeds are highest at PN6, gradually decrease through PN24, and then start to rise in adulthood (6 months). We found that corneal thickness is uncoupled from elastic wave speed and that the content and organization of the cornea primarily influence its mechanical properties. To the best of our knowledge, this work is the first detailed assessment of the postnatal mouse cornea's structure and biomechanics and warrants further investigation into the dynamic properties of the postnatal eye.
角膜是位于眼球前部的透明晶状体，作为一种结构屏障保护眼睛，并提供眼睛大部分的屈光力。在本研究中，我们利用出生后小鼠的眼睛来表征角膜结构和生物力学。在出生后第6天（PN）至第24天之间，我们观察到弹性波速度在PN6时最高，在PN24期间逐渐降低，然后在成年期（6个月）开始上升。我们发现角膜厚度与弹性波速度无关，并且角膜的成分和组织结构主要影响其力学性能。据我们所知，这项工作是对出生后小鼠角膜结构和生物力学的首次详细评估，值得进一步研究出生后眼睛的动态特性。
