Specialized T Cells Patrol Human Corneas

A new imaging technique puts the immune system of the eye in perspective, challenging a long-held status quo.

Written byRebecca Roberts, PhD

| 4 min read

A close-up of the human eye, showing a colorful iris, black pupil, and transparent cornea.

The cornea is a transparent layer of tissue that protects the eye from infection. New research shows that the cornea is inhabited by adaptive immune cells, like T cells, not only innate immune cells like dendritic cells as previously believed.

Image credit:© iStock, aislan13

Listen with Speechify

0:00

4:00

The cornea is akin to a battlefield. Constantly exposed to pathogens, it plays a critical role in protecting the eye from diseases.¹ Yet for years, ocular immunologists agreed that the human cornea was only inhabited by innate immune cells like dendritic cells (DCs).²

In a paper published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, optometrist Holly Chinnery and her colleagues at the University of Melbourne challenged this consensus by reporting the presence of specialized T cells—a type of adaptive immune cells—in the cornea.³ “It really questions some of our fundamental assumptions around the immune cells in the cornea, and that might challenge our thinking more broadly about diseases and therapies as well,” said Chinnery.

The consensus about innate immune cells in the cornea was based on in vivo confocal microscopy (IVCM), the current gold standard static imaging technique.3 However, IVCM has a few limitations, according to Chinnery. To better ...

Interested in reading more?

The Scientist ARCHIVES

Become a Member of

Receive full access to more than 35 years of archives, as well as TS Digest, digital editions of The Scientist, feature stories, and much more!

Join for free today

Already a member?

Add The Scientist as a preferred Google source to see more of our trusted coverage.

Meet the Author

Rebecca Roberts, PhD
Rebecca Roberts is a science writer and communicator. She earned her PhD in molecular biology from the University of the Sunshine Coast in Australia and completed a two-year postdoctoral fellowship at Lund University in Sweden. Her writing focuses on gene editing technology, cell and gene therapies, and the regulatory space.
View Full Profile