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The Cornea, Anatomy and Function

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Light and Specular Microscopy of the Cornea

Abstract

This chapter introduces the structure and anatomy of the cornea in order to show the most important corneal features from an eye banker’s point of view. The aim is to describe all the corneal characteristics that may be important, particularly in assessing corneal quality for grafting. The cornea is a transparent avascular tissue responsible for more than two thirds of the total refractive power of the eye. It is organized into three cellular layers—the epithelium, the stroma, and the endothelium—and three interfaces—the basement membrane of the epithelium, Bowman layer, and Descemet membrane. The epithelium keeps the corneal surface smooth and provides a barrier against external biologic agents and chemical damage. The stroma provides structural strength, shape, and stability. It has a natural tendency to absorb fluid from the anterior chamber, which can potentially lead to corneal edema and decreased corneal transparency. The innermost layer of the cornea is the endothelium, a monolayer of hexagonal cells. Through ionic pumps and cotransporters, endothelial cells drain excess fluid out of the stroma into the anterior chamber, thus maintaining corneal transparency. The endothelium does not proliferate and therefore, given the importance of its function, its damage is potentially more serious than that to the other corneal layers. It is the most important layer for maintaining corneal transparency as well as for the long-term survival of corneal grafts. This is the corneal layer on which eye bankers have to focus during the preparation of a cornea for transplantation.

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Acknowledgments

The author thanks Professor Thomas Fuchsluger, University Hospital Erlangen, Germany, and Professor Keith Meek, Cardiff University, UK, for their critical reading of this chapter.

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  1. Laboratory of the Biology and Pathology of the Eye, Institute of Biology and Medical Genetics, First Faculty of Medicine, Charles University, Prague, Czech Republic

    Katerina Jirsova

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Jirsova, K. (2017). The Cornea, Anatomy and Function. In: Light and Specular Microscopy of the Cornea. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-48845-5_1

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