The in vitro effect of antiseptics on epithelial cells of human cornea and conjunctiva

Abstract

in vitro evaluation of the effect of antiseptic eye drops on corneal and conjunctival epithelial cells. Antiseptic eye drops «Bactavit», «Vitabact» and «Ocomistin» were the object of the study. Immortalized human corneal epithelial cell lines (HCE) and human conjunctiva (Chang Conjunctiva, Clone 1-5c-4) were used as the test systems. The viability of the cells was assessed by their metabolic activity and morphology using the MTT test and phase-contrast microscopy. Antiseptic eye drops belonging to different groups of chemical compounds induced cytotoxic effects on the cells of corneal epithelium (HCE) and human conjunctiva (Chang Conjunctiva, Clone 1-5c-4) of varying degrees, leading to morphological and functional changes in those cells. The study confirms the possibility of using cultured cells for the in vitro comparative assessment of the cytotoxic effect of antiseptic ophthalmic agents.