On the Cornea of Healthy Merino Sheep: A Detailed Ex Vivo Confocal, Histological and Ultrastructural Study

Abstract

Our study performed qualitative and quantitative studies on the corneal ultrastructure of healthy female Merino sheep of ages 4 months and 6 years old from the Argentinean Pampa. The corneas were evaluated using ex vivo laser-scanning confocal microscopy, light microscopy and transmission electron microscopy. Those studies allowed us to obtain detailed images of the corneal layers as well as quantitative data of the cellular and sub-basal nerve densities in the cornea from sheep of different ages. The density of the corneal cells was significantly different in the anterior versus the posterior epithelium and stroma. Moreover, the density of the epithelial, stromal cells and endothelial cells, as well as the sub-basal nerve density were significantly lower in adult than in young animals. Our work provided a wide-ranging description of the corneal ultrastructure of healthy female Merino sheep, which adds to the current knowledge about the ophthalmological aspects of this species and undoubtedly benefits veterinarians.