Corneal penetration of gold nanoparticles--therapeutic implications.

Gold nanoparticles can show anti-glycation activity thereby preventing the aggregation of proteins. As glycation is one of the leading causes of cataract formation, the finding is important in therapeutic management of ocular pathology that follows cataract formation (e.g., cortical changes often resulting in nuclear sclerosis). In the present study, we have successfully conducted in vivo experiments using guinea pig models. While the anti-glycation property of GNPs is known in vitro, the present work for the first time shows corneal penetration of GNPs. The therapeutic promise of using GNP as an anti-cataract agent thus seems imminent. GNPs traverse and get deposited into different layers of the cornea as examined by Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM).