Topical ocular anesthetics affect epithelial cytoskeletal proteins of wounded cornea.

The purpose of this study was to characterize by immunofluorescent microscopy, the cytoskeletal proteins actin and myosin and the protein calmodulin (CaM) in trephined, n-heptanol treated murine corneal epithelium during in vitro organ culture before and following topical ocular anesthetic application. The study has shown that corneal epithelial wounds exposed to anesthetic agents fail to close, even after 24 hr of culture. Failure of the wound to close was accompanied by a general decrease in immunofluorescence for actin myosin and CaM following application of the anesthetics.