A Mouse Model for the Studyof Recurrent CornealEpithelial Erosions: ␣91 Integrin Implicated inProgression of the DiseaseSonali Pal-Ghosh,1 Ahdeah Pajoohesh-Ganji,1,2 Marcus Brown,1 and MaryAnn Stepp1,3PURPOSE
To describe an in vivo mouse model for the study ofrecurrent corneal erosion syndrome (RCES) in mice and tocharacterize the changes in ␣9 integrin expression duringwound healing
METHODS
Corneal epithelial debridement wounds of two sizes(1
5 and 2
5 mm) were made on the ocular surface of BALB/cmice and were evaluated at various times after wounding
Corneas were processed either as whole mounts and stainedwith propidium iodide and an antibody against ␣9 integrin orfor bromodeoxyuridine analyses of cell proliferation
A sepa-rate study involved analyses of corneal wound healing overti