Experimental Study On The Autogeneic Corneal Endotheliocyte Substituted With The Cultural Vascular Endotheliocyte

Purpose: Utilizing several similar characteristic role between vascular endotheliocyteand corneal endothelial cell to the feasibility of their succedaneous transplantationeach other for the therapy of bullous keratopathy.Methods: 26 experimental rabbits were classified into the experimental group (10rabbits), the experimental control group (10 rabbits) and the blank control group (6rabbits). In experimental group, cultural autogeneic vascular endotheliocyte would begrafted on posterior corneal surface without corneal endothelium; in blank controlgroup, autogeneic corneal button with corneal endothelium would be transplanteddirectly to contralateral eyeball for contrasting observation of others two groups; inexperimental control group, all the autogeneic corneal button whose Descemet'smembrane were removed from corneal stroma layer would be sutured to the cornealbed of contralateral eyeball for the same purpose as in experimental control group.Corneal transparence of all animals was frequently observed within the postoperative15 days. A ultrasound apparatus was adopted to measure the postoperative thicknessvariability of corneal graft every 7 days in each groups. On the sixteenth day of thepostoperative, corneal grafts of all groups were taken out of their left eyeball and putunder the inverted phase contrast microscope for the observation of distribution stateof vascular endotheliocyte on posterior corneal surface without Descemet's membraneand their morphologic change.Results: The clarity of corneal graft in the experimental group had an advantage overthat in the experimental control group, but next to that in the blank control group.Thickness value of corneal graft in each group was analyzed with T test as following: thickness difference of the graft was scarcely manifest between the experimentalgroup and blank control group (P＞0.05), but corneal thickness of the latter getespecially close to the normal cornea thickness. Thickness variability of the graft inthe experimental group was obviously different from that in the experimental group(P＜0.05), the serious corneal edema appeared in the latter group. Meanwhile,autogeneic vascular endotheliocyte could grow stably-uniformly in form of the pebbleon the posterior corneal surface of the experimental group. Pathological section hasshown that a layer of growing cell could be discovered on posterior corneal surface ofcorneal button in the experimental group, but lack of a membrane like Descemet'smembrane; no cell and material like membrane could be discovered on that of theexperimental control group; a layer of cell and a membrane like Descemet'smembrane could viewed on that of the blank control group.Conclusions: it was significant that vascular endotheliocyte plays the part of cornealendothelial cell for the maintenance of corneal dehydration form.