Animal Models in Eye Research

The eye is a complex sensory organ, which enables visual perception of the world. Thus the eye has several tissues that do different tasks. One of the most basic aspects of eye function is the sensitivity of cells to light and its transduction though the optic nerve to the brain. Different organisms use different ways to achieve these tasks. In this sense, eye function becomes a very important evolutionary aspect as well. This book presents the different animal models that are commonly used for eye research and their uniqueness in evaluating different aspects of eye development, evolution, physiology and disease.

Anatomical and Functional Diversity of Animal Eyes. The Simplest Eyes: Rhodopsin-mediated Phototaxis Reception in Microorganisms. The Planarian eye: a simple and plastic system with great regenerative capacity. Development of Drosophila Melanogaster eye: from precursor specification to terminal differentiation. The Antarctic Toothfish: a new model system for eye lens biology. Xenopus, an ideal vertebrate system for studies of eye development and regeneration. The Newt as a model for eye regeneration. The Chick as a model for retina development and regeneration. Eye Development using mouse genetics. Epithelial explants and their application to study developmental processes in the lens. Mouse models of the cornea and lens: understanding ocular disease. Deciphering irradiance detection in the mammalian retina. The Rabbit in Cataract Surgery. The Primate in Cataract/IOL Surgery.