Journal of Clinical and Cellular Immunology
Open Access
ISSN: 2155-9899
ISSN: 2155-9899
Reza Dana
Tanzania
Review Article
Corneal Lymphatics: Role in Ocular Inflammation as Inducer and Responder of Adaptive Immunity
Author(s): Sunil K. Chauhan, Thomas H. Dohlman and Reza DanaSunil K. Chauhan, Thomas H. Dohlman and Reza Dana
The normal cornea is devoid of lymphatic and blood vessels, thus suppressing both the afferent (lymphatic) and efferent (vascular) arms of the immune response–contributing to its ‘immune privilege’. Inflammation, however, negates this unique ‘immune’ and ‘angiogenic’ privilege of the cornea. Abnormal blood vessel growth from pre-existing limbal vessels into the cornea has been studied for many years, but it is only recently that the significance of new lymphatic vessels (lymphangiogenesis) in ocular inflammatory diseases has been demonstrated. Whereas blood vessels in inflamed ocular surface provide a route of entry for immune effector cells to the cornea, lymphatics facilitate the exit of antigen-presenting cells and antigenic material from the cornea to regional lymph nodes, thus promoting induction of adaptive i.. View More»
DOI:
10.4172/2155-9899.1000256