Smart contact lens containing hyaluronate-rose bengal conjugate for biophotonic myopia vision correction.

Abstract

As the collagen layer weakens with increasing age or certain diseases such as keratoconus and myopia, the mechanical property of the collagen layer decreases with corneal deformation. To circumvent these problems, the corneal collagen has been crosslinked with the photosensitizer riboflavin under UV light after de-epithelialization. However, this treatment with riboflavin and UV light can cause notable damage to the eye. Here, the biocompatible rose bengal (RB) dye was conjugated to hyaluronic acid (HA) to enhance the corneal permeability, which can be activated by safe green light with a wavelength of 530 nm. Two-photon microscopy revealed the deep tissue penetration of the HA-RB conjugate in comparison with RB. Collagen fibrillogenesis, ex vivo tensile test, and ex vivo histological analysis confirmed the effective collagen crosslinking by HA-RB conjugate and the light irradiation. Furthermore, we developed a smart contact lens for on-demand HA-RB conjugate delivery from the reservoir embedded in the contact lens. Taken together, we could envision the feasibility of a smart contact lens for biophotonic myopia vision correction.

• Authors: Jonghwan Mun, Tae Yeon Kim, David Myung, Sei Kwang Hahn
• Journal: Biomaterials science (Biomater Sci) Vol. 10 Issue 17 Pg. 4997-5005 (Aug 24 2022) ISSN: 2047-4849 [Electronic] England
• PMID: 35815427 (Publication Type: Journal Article)

Chemical References

• Cross-Linking Reagents
• Photosensitizing Agents
• Rose Bengal
• Hyaluronic Acid
• Collagen
• Riboflavin

Topics

• Collagen
• Contact Lenses
• Cross-Linking Reagents
• Humans
• Hyaluronic Acid
• Myopia (drug therapy)
• Photosensitizing Agents
• Riboflavin
• Rose Bengal
• Ultraviolet Rays