Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 1997 Jun;16(6):539-46.
doi: 10.1076/ceyr.16.6.539.5075.

A genetic basis for corneal sensitivity to ultraviolet light among recombinant SWXJ inbred strains of mice

J E Downes  1 , P G Swann, R S Holmes
Affiliations

A genetic basis for corneal sensitivity to ultraviolet light among recombinant SWXJ inbred strains of mice

J E Downes et al. Curr Eye Res. 1997 Jun.

Abstract

Purpose: To examine a possible genetic basis for corneal sensitivity to UV-B light exposure.

Methods: To this end, adult male mice from the 14 SWXJ recombinant inbred albino strains (originating from SJL/J and SWR/J parental strains) were subjected to ultraviolet (UV) radiation exposure of 0.078 J/cm2 and photographed four days post-exposure, to assess corneal opacity and the possible correlation with corneal aldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH) activity, alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH) activity and soluble protein content.

Results: Those recombinant strains that exhibited the SWR/J strain phenotype of having low levels of ALDH and decreased soluble protein levels also exhibited greater levels of corneal clouding after UV-exposure than the other strains, which exhibited "normal" levels of both ALDH activity and soluble protein in the cornea.

Conclusions: These data support an hypothesis for a major role for ALDH in assisting the cornea to protect the eye against UV-induced tissue damage.

PubMed Disclaimer

LinkOut - more resources