Eye microbiome trains immune cells to fend off pathogens in mice

NIH study shows microbe living on the surface of the eye protects cornea from infection.

C. mast is a commensal bacterium living on the surface of the eye.

Bugs in your eyes may be a good thing. Resident microbes living on the eye are essential for immune responses that protect the eye from infection, new research shows. The study, which appears in the journal Immunity on June 27, demonstrates the existence of a resident ocular microbiome that trains the developing immune system to fend off pathogens. The research was conducted at the National Eye Institute (NEI), part of the National Institutes of Health.

“This is the first evidence that a bacterium lives on the ocular surface long-term,” explained Rachel Caspi, Ph.D., senior investigator in NEI’s Laboratory of Immunology. “This work addresses a longstanding question about whether there is…