Abstract The TFOS DEWS II Pathophysiology Subcommittee reviewed the mechanisms
involved in the initiation and perpetuation of dry eye disease. Its central mechanism is …

Clinical and laboratory studies performed over the past few decades have discovered that
dry eye is a chronic inflammatory disease that can be initiated by numerous extrinsic or …

Background The study of microbial communities has been revolutionised in recent years by
the widespread adoption of culture independent analytical techniques such as 16S rRNA …

Bacterial DNA and live bacteria have been detected in human urine in the absence of
clinical infection, challenging the prevailing dogma that urine is normally sterile. Urgency …

Goblet cells (GCs) are specialized epithelial cells that line multiple mucosal surfaces and
have a well-appreciated role in barrier maintenance through the secretion of mucus …

Contact lenses are ocular prosthetic devices used by over 150 million people worldwide.
Primary applications of contact lenses include vision correction, therapeutics, and cosmetics …

Mucosal sites such as the intestine, oral cavity, nasopharynx, and vagina all have
associated commensal flora. The surface of the eye is also a mucosal site, but proof of a …

The ocular surface flora perform an important role in the defense mechanisms of the ocular
surface system. Its regulation of the immunological activity and the barrier effect against …

Dry eye can damage the ocular surface and result in mild corneal epithelial defect to
blinding corneal pannus formation and squamous metaplasia. Significant progress in the …

Dry eye is a common ocular surface inflammatory disease that significantly affects quality of
life. Dysfunction of the lacrimal function unit (LFU) alters tear composition and breaks ocular …