Optical and Morphometric Characteristics of the Cornea and Anterior Chamber of the Eye of Soviet Chinchilla Rabbits

Purpose: to study the parameters of the cornea and anterior chamber of the Soviet Chinchilla rabbit by Scheimpflug imaging, OCT of the anterior segment and endothelial biomicroscopy. 

Methods. Photoregistration, scheimpflug tomography, OCT, and endothelial biomicroscopy of the cornea under intravenous anesthesia were performed on 30 eyes of 30 male rabbits. Statistical data processing was performed using the SPSS 26.0 software package. 

Results. The obtained data of optical and morphometric parameters corresponded to similar parameters of the New Zealand white rabbit. In 32.5 %, the cell area was in the range from 400 to 500 microns, in 31.9 % — in the range of 300–400 microns, and in 11.6 % and 14.0 % it was in the range of 200–300 and 500–600 microns, respectively. The majority of cells (56.6 %) were represented by hexagonal cells, 20.3 % — pentagonal and 16.6 % — heptagonal. The amount of reverse light scattering of the cornea decreases in all layers from the center to the periphery. According to OCT data, the average thickness of the rabbit cornea epithelium was 44.19 ± 5.10 microns, the average thickness of the stroma was 343.23 ± 41.40 microns, the thickness of the cornea as a whole in the central zone was 388.37 ± 41.45 microns. The correlation analysis data showed the presence of a strong and moderate relationship between the volume of the anterior chamber, the diameter of the pupil and the magnitude of the iridocorneal angle. 

Conclusion. Optical and morphometric characteristics of the cornea and anterior chamber of the Soviet Chinchilla rabbits eye can be useful in planning experiments using these animals in ophthalmology. There were no significant differences in the refractive and morphological properties of the cornea between rabbits of the Soviet Chinchilla breed and the New Zealand white rabbit. The direct relationship between the volume of the anterior chamber, the diameter of the pupil and the magnitude of the iridocorneal angle, which is significant for the hydrodynamics of watery moisture and surgical manipulations on the anterior segment, is of interest.

1. Chisolm JJ. The Successful Transplanting of a Piece of Rabbit’s Cornea into the Human Eye, for the Purpose of Restoring Sight to a Blind Man. Am J Dent Sci. 1888;22(3):118–124.

2. Gaiduk IA. Contribution of histologists of the scientific school of the Military Medical Academy to the study of descemetov epithelium. St. Petersburg: Military Medical Academy named after S.M. Kirov, 2023 (In Russ.).

3. Moffatt SL, Cartwright VA, Stumpf TH. Centennial review of corneal transplantation. Clin Exp Ophthalmol. 2005;33(6):642–657. doi: 10.1111/j.1442-9071.2005.01134.x.

4. Wilson SE. The Cornea: No Difference in the Wound Healing Response to Injury Related to Whether, or Not, There’s a Bowman’s Layer. Biomolecules. 2023;13(5):771. doi: 10.3390/biom13050771.

5. Wilson SE. Bowman’s layer in the corneastructure and function and regeneration. Exp Eye Res. 2020;195:108033. doi: 10.1016/j.exer.2020.108033.

6. Petroll WM, Kivanany PB, Hagenasr D, Graham EK. Corneal Fibroblast Migration Patterns During Intrastromal Wound Healing Correlate With ECM Structure and Alignment. Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci. 2015;56(12):7352–7361. doi: 10.1167/iovs.15-17978.

7. Ibrahim N, Hifny A, Elhanbaly R, El-Desoky SMM, Gaber W. Morphogenetic events influencing corneal maturation, development, and transparency: Light and electron microscopic study. Microsc Res Tech. 2023;86(5):539–555. doi: 10.1002/jemt.24293.

8. Abdo M, Haddad S, Emam M. Development of the New Zealand White Rabbit Eye: I. Preand Postnatal Development of Eye Tunics. Anat Histol Embryol. 2017;46(5):423–430. doi: 10.1111/ahe.12284.

9. Baraya M, Moore J, Lopes BT, Wu R, Bao F, Zheng X, Consejo A, Abass A. Limitations of Reconstructing Pentacam Rabbit Corneal Tomography by Zernike Polynomials. Bioengineering (Basel). 2022;10(1):39. doi: 10.3390/bioengineering10010039.

10. Yüksel H, Türkcü FM, Ari Ş, Çinar Y, Cingü AK, Şahin M, Şahin A, Özkurt Z, Çaça İ. Anterior segment parameters of rabbits with rotating Scheimpflug camera. Vet Ophthalmol. 2015;18(3):210–213. doi: 10.1111/vop.12150.

11. Vohra M, Gour A, Rajput J, Sangwan B. Burn-Induced Neurotrophic Keratitis Model in New Zealand Rabbit Investigated Using Medical Clinical Readouts and In Vivo Confocal Microscopy (IVCM). Cells. 2024;13(5):379. doi: 10.3390/cells13050379.

12. Shevchenko AA, Chernykh OYu, Strelnikov VV, Shevchenko LV. Biological features and diseases of nutria, rabbits. A study guide. Krasnodar: KubGAU, 2008 (In Russ.).

13. Fedoseeva EV, Chentsova NV, Borovkova NV. The possibilities of platelet-rich plasma in the treatment of corneal defects (experimental study). Point of view. East — West. 2019;1:51–53 (In Russ.). doi: 10.25276/2410-1257-2019-1-51-53.

14. Yarmamedov DM, Zatolokina MA, Lipatov VA. Morphological aspects of the dynamics of corneal regeneration in the treatment of infected trauma by various methods. Bulletin of the Volgograd State Medical University. 2018;4(68):73–76 (In Russ.). doi: 10.19163/1994-9480-2018-4(68)-73-76.

15. Germanova VN, Karlova EV, Nefedova IF, Radaikina MV. Experimental model of chronic inflammation of ocular surface tissues associated with drug treatment of glaucoma. Point of view. East — West. 2022;2:12–19 (In Russ.). doi: 10.25276/24101257-2022-2-12-19.

16. Anatychuk LI, Pasechnikova NV, Zadorozhny OS, Nazaretyan RE. The temperature distribution in different parts of the rabbit’s eye depends on the ambient temperature. Ophthalmology. Eastern Europe. 2015;4(27):60–68 (In Russ.).

17. Mushkova IA, Borzenok SA, Karimova AN, Shkondina YuV. Histomorphological changes in the rabbit cornea after implantation of intracorneal lenses and electron microscopic substantiation of the results obtained. Bulletin of the Orenburg State University. 2015;12(187):151–154 (In Russ.).

18. Malyugin BE, Tereshchenko AV, Antonova OP. To study the processes of depopulation of the rabbit cornea by endothelial cells in experimental modeling of partial transplantation of the endothelium and descemet membrane. Ophthalmosurgery. 2019;4:7–15 (In Russ.). doi: 10.25276/0235-4160-2019-4-7-15.