Current Evidence on the Ocular Surface Microbiota and Related Diseases

Abstract

The ocular surface microbiota refers to the resident non-pathogenic microorganisms that colonize conjunctiva and cornea. Several studies have shown that ocular surface epithelial cells can respond selectively to specific components of ocular pathogenic bacteria by producing pro-inflammatory cytokines and, in contrast, they do not respond to non-pathogenic bacteria, thus supporting the colonization by a real microbiota. However, the analysis of the ocular microbiome composition is essential for understanding the pathophysiology of various ophthalmic diseases. In this scenario, the first studies, which used microbiological culture techniques, reported a less diverse profile of the ocular microbiota compared with that recently discovered using new molecular-based methods. Indeed, until a few years ago, the microbiota of the ocular surface appeared to be dominated by Gram-positive and a few Gram-negative bacteria, as well as some fungal strains. In contrast, genomics has nowadays detected a remarkable diversity in the ocular surface microorganisms. Furthermore, recent studies suggest that the microbiota of other areas of the body, such as the gut and oral microbiota, are involved in the pathophysiology of several ophthalmic diseases. The aim of the present study is to highlight the current evidence on the ocular surface microbiota to better understand it and to investigate its potential role in the development of ophthalmic diseases.

Keywords: microbiota; ocular surface; ophthalmic diseases.

Figure 1

Anatomy of the eye (© 2020 American Academy of Ophthalmology) [12].

Figure 2

Relative abundance of major phyla and mayor genera found in the ocular surface using 16S rRNA gene reads. Dong et al. analyzed 115,003 sequences in total (2011), Huang et al. analyzed 840,373 high-quality sequencing reads (2016), Zhou et al. generated 1,690,427 reads (2014).