Ocular microbiome-host interactions modeled in eye-on-chip

• Applicant: Sara Trujillo Munoz, Ph.D.
• Subject Area: Biomedical Systems Technology ; Ophthalmology ; Biological and Biomimetic Chemistry ; Cell Biology
• Term: since 2025
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 567848411

The microbiome is the collection of microorganisms that live in the gut, skin, vagina or eye. They play a central role in health and disease. The ocular microbiome is quite stable throughout life and different diseases like dry eye or diabetes or the use of contact lenses are known to change the microbiome of the eye. Knowing how these microorganisms interact with the ocular surface is important for the development of new treatments that could help restore a healthy ocular surface, for example to treat ocular infections. Typically, mouse models are used to understand microbiome-eye interactions. These models have different microbiomes than humans, and they are ethically challenging. Therefore, in vitro models capable of recapitulate these interactions are needed. In this project, we will model the human ocular microbiome by using organ-on-chip technologies. For this, a microfluidic system will be used to engineer the ocular surface, which will be the base to investigate how common bacteria from the eye like Corynebacterium, adheres and interacts with the eye. The objectives of this project are, first, to model the ocular surface in a microfluidic chip (eye-on-chip), second, to investigate how the cellular components of this eye-on-chip function in static and modelling blinking functions and finally, to incorporate Corynebacterium as it is the main bacteria genera present in healthy eye. Changes in function and expression of key markers will be investigated over time.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants