Ricerc@Sapienza

The skin surface lipids (SSL) result from the blending of sebaceous and epidermal lipids, which derive from the sebaceous gland (SG) secretion and the permeability barrier of the stratum corneum (SC), respectively. In humans, the composition of the SSL is distinctive of the anatomical distribution of the SG. Thus, the abundance of sebum biomarkers is consistent with the density of the SG. Limited evidence on the influence that the SG exerts on the SC lipidome is available.

The purpose of our experimental research was to assess the effects of aging on the main corneal structures in healthy corneas. Small, human cornea samples were collected from 20 Caucasian subjects during surgery for traumatic lesions to the eye. Ten subjects were adults (mean age 28 years) and ten were elderly (mean age 76 years). Morphological analysis was carried out using light microscopy and electron microscopy. Another 40 patients (20 young: mean age ˂ 30 yrs; 20 elderly: mean age ˃ 70yrs) were studied in vivo by confocal microscopy.

This special issue focuses on the current approaches for diagnosis, evaluation, and management of autoimmune diseases of the anterior segment of the eye, which range from immune keratoconjunctivitis to anterior uveitis. Immune diseases of the anterior segment of the eye may be caused by several local or systemic conditions and may present in a wide range of diseases including dry eye syndrome, ocular cicatricial pemphigoid (OCP), graft versus host disease (GVHD), and some forms of anterior uveitis often associated with systemic autoimmune diseases such as ankylosing spondylitis.

Limbal stem cell deficiency (LSCD) is a clinical condition characterized by damage of cornea limbal stem cells, which results in an impairment of corneal epithelium turnover and in an invasion of the cornea by the conjunctival epithelium. In these patients, the conjunctivalization of the cornea is associated with visual impairment and cornea transplantation has poor prognosis for recurrence of the conjunctivalization. Current treatments of LSCD are aimed at replacing the damaged corneal stem cells in order to restore a healthy corneal epithelium.