Dr Lisa Hill, Associate Professor in Ocular disease and Therapeutics at the University of Birmingham said:
“We know that there are new immune cells that enter the cornea after it is damaged. These cells are typically newly recruited in all tissues after trauma and damage, but in the cornea cells that normally live in the tissue likely contribute to the early process of nerve recovery and decorin treatment enhances these neuroprotective behaviours”.
Co-lead author Associate Professor Laura Downie from the University of Melbourne said:
“The cornea recruits more dendritic cells during the early phase of the wound healing process. Notably, at later stages after corneal injury, our novel therapeutic – decorin – dampens the recruitment of other immune cells that typically cause tissue damage.”
Dr Holly Chinnery, Senior Lecturer in Optometry and Vision Sciences at the University of Melbourne and lead author of the study said:
“Over the past 20 years, there has been a large shift in the understanding of corneal immune cells. Initially these cells were considered absent from the centre of the cornea, and they were mostly considered as cells that bridged the innate and adaptive immune system. Studies have more recently proposed that their close association with sensory nerves reflects their important functions in tissue homeostasis and nerve regeneration after injury. In particular, dendritic cells in the epithelium, in the presence of topically applied decorin, may shape the inflammatory response that follows after sterile trauma.
“This makes these cells, which are present in normal healthy human corneas, an attractive target to improve nerve regeneration after injury, which is a common consequence after refractive surgery and other ocular surgical procedures. Going forward, therapeutic strategies could consider combining the power of the resident immune cells, together with novel topical treatments such as decorin, to treat sensory nerve repair in injured corneas.”
