The cornea is the outermost tissue of the eye with transparency and refractory power. Diseases, infections, and trauma can damage the cornea resulting in corneal scarring, neovascularization, and loss of corneal sensitivity. All these can lead to corneal blindness. Research focusing on developing novel treatment options as well as for discovering corneal pathophysiology of diseases, infections, and trauma need stable and repeatable corneal wound healing models. Good models will help and promote research toward preventing and reversing corneal opacity to recover corneal transparency and strength with extracellular matrix reconstruction.

The cornea includes the epithelium, stroma, endothelium, Bowman’s membrane, and Descemet’s membrane in between. Corneal epithelial stem cells and corneal stromal stem cells have been well described and the corneal endothelial stem cells are not yet well characterized. In this method collection of corneal wound healing models, we will include in vitro, ex vivo, or in vivo models for studying corneal epithelium, corneal stroma, corneal endothelium, and corneal nerves. These protocols will provide detailed procedures used to generate the models, identify, and characterize the models. The use of these models for studying corneal regeneration, developing new drugs, investigating corneal pathophysiology will be also discussed.