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Laboratory science
Chronic ocular hypertension in rabbits induced by limbal buckling
  1. Qilin Wang1,
  2. Juanjuan Wang1,
  3. Xingyan Lin1,
  4. Kwok Ho Lui2,
  5. Suiting Chang1,
  6. Rouxi Zhou1,
  7. Dennis Shun-Chiu Lam1,2
  1. 1 State Key Laboratory of Ophthalmology, Zhongshan Ophthalmic Center, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China
  2. 2 C-MER (Shenzhen) Dennis Lam Eye Hospital; The C-MER International Research Eye Institute of The Chinese University of Hong Kong (Shenzhen), Shenzhen, Guangdong, China
  1. Correspondence to Professor Dennis Shun-Chiu Lam, State Key Laboratory of Ophthalmology, Zhongshan Ophthalmic Center, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510275, China; lamshch{at}mail.sysu.edu.cn

Abstract

Aim To establish a rabbit model of chronic ocular hypertension (OHT) by limbal buckling.

Methods Eighteen New Zealand White rabbits were involved and divided into three groups. A latex encircling band of 20, 25 or 35 mm was implanted behind the limbus in the right eye of each animal. The intraocular pressure (IOP) was monitored for 8 weeks, after which optic nerve damage was evaluated by fundus photography, optical coherence tomography (OCT) retrograde labelling and histology. Meanwhile, the anterior chamber angle (ACA) was examined by OCT and gonioscopy.

Results OHT was induced in all animals after surgery. The IOP peaked at 38.0±3.7, 32.0±3.9 and 24.1±6.5 mm Hg in groups 1, 2 and 3, respectively, and remained elevated for 22, 25 and 39 days on average, respectively. The elevated IOPs showed good consistency within 2 weeks, although the durations of high IOP varied moderately. The area ratio between the optic cup and disc (cup to disc area) was increased in 73% of the treated eyes, and the average changes were 0.10±0.13, 0.11±0.08 and 0.09±0.02 in groups 1, 2 and 3, respectively. The depth of the optic cup was also increased in the treated eyes, and the density of the retinal ganglion cells was reduced. Additionally, the ACA showed a dynamic change with IOP after the latter was reduced by paracentesis.

Conclusion Limbal buckling provides an effective method of producing chronic OHT and glaucomatous optic neuropathy in rabbits.

  • glaucoma
  • intraocular pressure
  • animal model

https://doi.org/10.1136/bjophthalmol-2017-311702

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    Footnotes

    • Contributors QW and DSCL conceived and designed the project. QW, JW, XL, KHL, SC and RZ performed the experiments and acquired the data. QW, JW and XL drafted and critically revised the manuscript. DSCL supervised the project. All authors approved the final version of the manuscript to be published.

    • Funding This work was supported by the Thousand Talents Program Award from the Chinese government, 2012.

    • Competing interests None declared.

    • Patient consent Not required.

    • Ethics approval All procedures followed the ARVO Statement for the Use of Animals in Ophthalmic and Vision Research and were approved by the Animal Ethics Committee of the Zhongshan Ophthalmic Center.

    • Provenance and peer review Not commissioned; externally peer reviewed.

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