Anterior Eye Segment Dissection: A Method to Isolate Cornea Bearing Anterior Segment from Porcine Eye

Abstract

Source: Boice, E. N., Snider, E. J. Anterior Segment Organ Culture Platform for Tracking Open Globe Injuries and Therapeutic Performance. J. Vis. Exp. (2021).

In this video, we demonstrate the dissection of the cornea-bearing anterior segment of the porcine eye. The isolated segment can be used for organ culturing to study the pathophysiology of eye disorders.

Protocol

All procedures involving animal models have been reviewed by the local institutional animal care committee and the JoVE veterinary review board.

1. Dissection of tissue

1. Prepare the porcine tissue using non-sterile dissection workspace.
   1. Procure enucleated porcine eyes from a local abattoir, animal studies, or vendor. Maintain the eyes on ice submerged in PBS during delivery and use immediately upon receiving.
   2. Cut away the extraorbital tissue and trim the conjunctiva leaving only the corneoscleral shell and optic nerve. Perform the dissection under non-sterile conditions with large surgical scissors and forc....

Materials

List of materials used in this article

Name	Company	Catalog Number	Comments
Anti-Anti	Gibco	15240-096
Betadine	Fisher Scientific	NC1696484
Cotton swabs	Puritan	25-8061WC
Fine forceps	World Precision Instruments	15914
Gauze	Covidien	8044
Large forceps	World Precision Instruments	500365
Large surgical scissors	World Precision Instruments	503261
Medium toothed forceps	World Precision Instruments	501217
PBS	Gibco	10010-023
Petri dish (100 mm)	Fisher	FB0875713
Razor blade	Fisher	12-640
Sterile 100 mL beakers with lids	VWR	15704-092
Vannas scissors	World Precision Instruments	WP5070