Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Assessment of gelatin-epigallocatechin gallate nanoparticles with hyaluronic acid coating for treating dry eye associated keratopathy in rats.
By Chan MH et al.·2025·Institute of Veterinary Clinical Sciences·View original on Europe PMC →
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- dog
Plain-English summary
A group of female rats with dry eye disease, known as keratoconjunctivitis sicca (KCS), had their tear glands removed to study the condition. They were treated with either a new type of nanoparticle therapy (gelatin-epigallocatechin gallate nanoparticles with hyaluronic acid coating) or various artificial tears. The nanoparticle treatment showed the best results, improving corneal health and reducing inflammation more effectively than the artificial tears. This suggests that this new treatment could be a promising option for managing dry eye issues in pets.
People also search for: dog dry eye treatment · KCS in dogs · artificial tears for dogs · eye problems in dogs · corneal health in pets
Abstract
Keratoconjunctivitis sicca (KCS) is a common ocular disease in dogs characterized by inflammation of the cornea and conjunctiva. This study investigates the effectiveness of gelatin-epigallocatechin gallate nanoparticles with hyaluronic acid coating (GEH NPs) and various artificial tears in treating KCS led keratopathy in a rat model. Eighteen female Sprague-Dawley rats, aged 6 to 8 weeks were randomly assigned to 6 groups of 3. All rats except the Sham group underwent unilateral exorbital and infraorbital lacrimal gland excisions to induce KCS. The treatment groups included a KCS group without treatment, a GEH group treated with GEH NPs, and 3 groups receiving different artificial tears. Clinical examinations, including slit-lamp biomicroscopy, optical coherence tomography (OCT), and ocular surface analyser-VET (OSA-VET) were conducted preoperatively at 1 and 2 weeks postoperatively. For treating KCS associated keratopathy, the GEH NPs showed superior outcomes and consistently ranked among the strongest treatment options in most aspects evaluated, including reduced corneal irregularity, improved tear film stability, and lower fluorescein scores, indicating better corneal integrity. Additionally, the GEH group displayed the least inflammatory cell infiltration and maintained a healthier epithelial structure, further underscoring its protective effects. GEH was administered twice daily while other treatment groups were administrated 3 times daily, highlighting its efficacy even with a lower dosing frequency. The artificial tears demonstrated variable benefits on KCS led keratopathy across different evaluations. GEH NPs exhibited excellent protective effects and therapeutic potential on dry eye associated keratopathy based on this study.
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Search related cases →Original publication on Europe PMC: https://europepmc.org/article/MED/39924182