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Cells
Special Issues
Molecular and Cellular Mechanisms of Corneal Disease
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Molecular and Cellular Mechanisms of Corneal Disease

A special issue of Cells (ISSN 2073-4409). This special issue belongs to the section "Cellular Pathology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (28 February 2021) | Viewed by 10605

Special Issue Editor

Prof. Dr. Dimitrios Karamichos

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
North Texas Eye Research Institute (NTERI), University of North Texas Health Science Center, Fort Worth, TX 76107, USA
Interests: corneal wound healing; cornea trauma; keratoconus; bioengineering; bioprinting; diabetic keratopathy
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The human cornea is a crystal-clear tissue covering the front of the eye. Its architecture and organization ensure visual acuity. The corneal microenvironment consist of five distinct (three cellular and two acellular) layers. Corneal trauma and/or diseases can have irreversible and devastating results that lead to partial or total blindness. Many factors can affect the ending of corneal disorders, and ultimately determine vision and life quality. Significant advances in our understanding of cellular and molecular mechanisms have been reported in the literature; however, significant gaps exist in early diagnosis and successful therapies. This is further highlighted by the fact that corneal transplantation remains the gold standard treatment for patients with significant corneal injury/trauma. A multidisciplinary approach seems necessary in order to tackle the complex pathobiology of corneal disease and trauma. The main aim of this Special Issue is to bring together all experts in the corneal field and publish cutting-edge research that can significantly advance our knowledge and transform future therapies. From the corneal epithelium to the endothelium, all contributions are welcome.

Dr. Dimitrios Karamichos
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Cells is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • corneal disease and trauma
  • corneal immunology
  • corneal anatomy and pathology
  • corneal bioengineering and biomechanics

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Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

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11 pages, 1684 KiB  
Article
Arginine Supplementation Promotes Extracellular Matrix and Metabolic Changes in Keratoconus
by Tina B. McKay, Shrestha Priyadarsini, Tyler Rowsey and Dimitrios Karamichos
Cells 2021, 10(8), 2076; https://doi.org/10.3390/cells10082076 - 13 Aug 2021
Cited by 24 | Viewed by 3830
Abstract
Keratoconus (KC) is a common corneal ectatic disease that affects 1:500–1:2000 people worldwide and is associated with a progressive thinning of the corneal stroma that may lead to severe astigmatism and visual deficits. Riboflavin-mediated collagen crosslinking currently remains the only approved treatment to [...] Read more.
Keratoconus (KC) is a common corneal ectatic disease that affects 1:500–1:2000 people worldwide and is associated with a progressive thinning of the corneal stroma that may lead to severe astigmatism and visual deficits. Riboflavin-mediated collagen crosslinking currently remains the only approved treatment to halt progressive corneal thinning associated with KC by improving the biomechanical properties of the stroma. Treatments designed to increase collagen deposition by resident corneal stromal keratocytes remain elusive. In this study, we evaluated the effects of arginine supplementation on steady-state levels of arginine and arginine-related metabolites (e.g., ornithine, proline, hydroxyproline, spermidine, and putrescine) and collagen protein expression by primary human corneal fibroblasts isolated from KC and non-KC (healthy) corneas and cultured in an established 3D in vitro model. We identified lower cytoplasmic arginine and spermidine levels in KC-derived constructs compared to healthy controls, which corresponded with overall higher gene expression of arginase. Arginine supplementation led to a robust increase in cytoplasmic arginine, ornithine, and spermidine levels in controls only and a significant increase in collagen type I secretion in KC-derived constructs. Further studies evaluating safety and efficacy of arginine supplementation are required to elucidate the potential therapeutic applications of modulating collagen deposition in the context of KC. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Molecular and Cellular Mechanisms of Corneal Disease)
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Review

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19 pages, 2056 KiB  
Review
Experimental Models for Fungal Keratitis: An Overview of Principles and Protocols
by Micaela L. Montgomery and Kevin K. Fuller
Cells 2020, 9(7), 1713; https://doi.org/10.3390/cells9071713 - 16 Jul 2020
Cited by 27 | Viewed by 5956
Abstract
Fungal keratitis is a potentially blinding infection of the cornea that afflicts diverse patient populations worldwide. The development of better treatment options requires a more thorough understanding of both microbial and host determinants of pathology, and a spectrum of experimental models have been [...] Read more.
Fungal keratitis is a potentially blinding infection of the cornea that afflicts diverse patient populations worldwide. The development of better treatment options requires a more thorough understanding of both microbial and host determinants of pathology, and a spectrum of experimental models have been developed toward this end. In vivo (animal) models most accurately capture complex pathological outcomes, but protocols may be challenging to implement and vary widely across research groups. In vitro models allow for the molecular dissection of specific host cell–fungal interactions, but they do so without the appropriate environmental/structural context; ex vivo (corneal explant) models provide the benefits of intact corneal tissue, but they do not provide certain pathological features, such as inflammation. In this review, we endeavor to outline the key features of these experimental models as well as describe key technical variations that could impact study design and outcomes. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Molecular and Cellular Mechanisms of Corneal Disease)
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