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. 2022 Nov 21;17(11):e0277753.
doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0277753. eCollection 2022.

Molecular and microbiological evidence of bacterial contamination of intraocular lenses commonly used in canine cataract surgery

Kourtney K Dowler  1 , Aida Vientós-Plotts  1 , Elizabeth A Giuliano  1 , Zachary L McAdams  2 , Carol R Reinero  1 , Aaron C Ericsson  3
Affiliations

Molecular and microbiological evidence of bacterial contamination of intraocular lenses commonly used in canine cataract surgery

Kourtney K Dowler et al. PLoS One. .

Abstract

Inflammatory outcomes, including toxic anterior segment syndrome (TASS) and infectious endophthalmitis, are potentially painful, blinding complications following cataract surgery. In an in vitro pilot study, commercially available, sterile foldable intraocular lenses (IOLs) used during routine canine cataract surgery, and their packaging fluid were surveyed for the presence of bacterial DNA and/or viable (cultivable) bacteria. Swabs from IOLs and packaging fluid from three different veterinary manufacturers and three different production lots/manufacturer were collected for 16S ribosomal ribonucleic acid (rRNA) sequencing. Packaging fluid samples were collected for aerobic/capnophilic bacterial culture. Culture yielded one isolate, identified as Staphylococcus epidermidis. 16S rRNA sequencing revealed distinct brand-specific bacterial DNA profiles, conserved between IOLs and packaging fluid of all production lots within each manufacturer. The dominant taxonomy differentiating each manufacturer was annotated as Staphylococcus sp, and was a 100% match to S. epidermidis. Distinct mixtures of bacterial DNA are present and consistent in IOLs and packaging fluid depending on the manufacturer, and Staphylococcus is the dominant contributor to the bacterial DNA detected. Caralens products had a significantly lower amount of Staphylococcus spp. compared to Anvision and Dioptrix products.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors have declared no competing interests exist.

Figures

Fig 1
Fig 1. Composition of each manufacturer.
Intraocular lenses (IOL) and packaging fluid yield varying microbial taxonomic profiles (A). Relative taxonomic abundance plots of the genus Staphylococcus for IOL/packaging fluid samples (according to manufacturer) and negative controls. (B).
Fig 2
Fig 2. Principal coordinate analyses of each IOL manufacturer.
Brand-specific clustering of microbial communities for intraocular lens (■), packaging fluid (●), E-swabs (▲), and lysis buffer (◆) were found according to manufacturer. PCoAs using (A) Bray Curtis.and (B) Jaccard distances with 95% confidence ellipses.
Fig 3
Fig 3. A heatmap of the 110 significantly differing amplicon sequence variants.
Distinct clustering of the most abundant sequence variants was found in the 3 different brands, indicating dissimilar community compositions.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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