In Vivo Efficacy of Imatinib Mesylate, a Tyrosine Kinase Inhibitor, in the Treatment of Chemically Induced Dry Eye in Animal Models

PURPOSE: Dry eye disease (DED) is a multifactorial disorder of the tears and ocular surface accompanied by ocular discomfort, visual disturbance, tear film instability, and ocular surface inflammation. In the present study, we evaluated the efficacy of the tyrosine kinase inhibitor imatinib mesylate for the treatment of DED. METHODS: Experimental models of DED were generated in Sprague Dawley rats using a combination of benzalkonium chloride (BAC) with atropine sulfate and in New Zealand White rabbits using BAC. The animals were treated twice daily with eye drops of vehicle, imatinib (0.01%–0.3%), or a positive control (Restasis). The improvement in DED due to imatinib was assessed by staining with fluorescein, lissamine green, impression cytology, and histological analysis. In addition, immunofluorescence staining was performed at the end of the study to evaluate the inflammatory response in the ocular surface. RESULTS: Topical application of imatinib significantly reduced ocular surface damage compared with vehicle-treated animals. Imatinib restored the morphology and structure of the conjunctival epithelium and reduced the recruitment of immune cells in the corneal epithelium. Furthermore, imatinib significantly reduced the impression cytology score, thus demonstrating that imatinib prevents the loss of goblet cells in DED animal models. The therapeutic efficacy of imatinib was similar to or better than that of cyclosporine treatment. CONCLUSIONS: In this study, we provide an animal in vivo proof of concept of the therapeutic potential of imatinib for the treatment of DED. TRANSLATIONAL RELEVANCE: With this study we show the possibility of developing imatinib as a new ophthalmic drop to treat DED.