Ultrastructure, transparency and nutrition of the corneal epithelium in the adult rabbit

ABSTRACT

The present work aimed to study the ultrastructure of the corneal epithelium of the adult rabbit by the electron microscope in an attempt to gain some insight into the structural-functional relationships. Five young adult male rabbits of domesticated New Zeal and white strain were used in this study. The surface epithelium of the rabbit cornea presented fine irregular microvilli and microplicae with a layer of glycoprotein spread over the surface of the corneal epithelium. There are three types of wing cells on the basis of electron density Light, medium and dark. Between plasma membranes of the wing cells, many desmosomes, gap junctions and zonula adherens were observed. Hemidesmosomes and gap junctions were presented in the basal layer of cells, which established most of the junctional complexes with the basal lamina. The regular architecture of the corneal epithelium allows light to pass with minimal disruption. The squamous epithelial cells have large stores of glycogen that provide an energy reserve. Moreover, the tight junction in the corneal epithelium offers a significant barrier to ion diffusion across the epithelium