Date of Award
2016
Document Type
Dissertation
Publication Status
Version of Record
Submission Date
October 2026
Thesis/Dissertation Advisor [Chair]
Kantorow, Marc
Abstract
The vertebrate eye lens functions to focus light onto the retina to produce vision. The lens is composed of an anterior monolayer of cuboidal epithelial cells that overlie a core of organelle free fiber cells. The lens develops and grows throughout life by the successive layering of lens fiber cells via their differentiation from lens epithelial cells. Lens developmental defect and damage to the lens are associated with cataract formation, an opacity of the lens that is a leading cause of visual impairment worldwide. The only treatment to date for cataract is by surgery. Elucidating those molecules and mechanisms that regulate the development and lifelong protection of the lens is critical toward the development of future therapies to prevent or treat cataract. To determine those molecules and mechanisms that may be important for these lens requirements we employed high-throughput RNA sequencing of microdissected differentiation statespecific lens cells to identify an extensive range of transcripts encoding proteins expressed by these functionally distinct cell types. Using this data, we identified differentiation state-specific molecules that regulate mitochondrial populations between lens epithelial cells that require the maintenance of a functional population of mitochondria and lens fiber cells that must eliminate their mitochondria for their maturation. In addition, we discovered a novel mechanism for how lens epithelial cells clear apoptotic cell debris that could arise from damage to the lens and found that UVlight likely compromises this system. Moreover, the data herein provide a framework to determine novel lens cell differentiation state-specific mechanisms. Future studies are required to determine the requirements of the identified molecules and mechanisms during lens development, lens defense against damage, and cataract formation.
Extent
117 p.
Recommended Citation
Chauss, Daniel C., "Developmental and Protective Mechanisms of the Ocular Lens." (2016). Electronic Theses and Dissertations 2010 - 2019. 1436.
https://digitalcommons.fau.edu/etd_general_6/1436
Identifier
FA00004577
Comments
Includes bibliography.|Dissertation (Ph.D.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2016.|FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection|Includes bibliography.