Assessment of Full-Eye Response to Osmotic Stress in Mouse Model In Vivo Using Optical Coherence Tomography

NaCl based solutions were applied as osmotic stress agents to alter the hydration state of the mouse eye. Full-eye responses to these osmotic challenges were monitored in vivo using a custom-built optical coherence tomography (OCT) with an extended imaging range of 12.38 mm. Dynamic changes in the mouse eye were quantified based on the OCT images using several parameters, including the central corneal thickness (CCT), the anterior chamber depth (ACD), the crystalline lens thickness (LT), the cornea-retina distance (CRD), the iris curvature (IC), and the lens scattering intensity (LSI). Apparent but reversible changes in the morphology of almost all the ocular components and the light transparency of the lens are exhibited. Particularly, the ocular dehydration induced by the hypertonic challenges resulted in a closing of the iridocorneal angle and an opacification of the lens. Our results indicated that the ocular hydration is an important physiological process which might be correlated with various ocular disorders, such as dry eye, cataract, and angle-closure glaucoma, and would affect the biometry and imaging of the eye. OCT uniquely enables the comprehensive study of the dynamic full-eye responses to the ocular hydration in vivo.