Abstract:Objective To investigate the inhibition of dendrobium on corneal neovascularization (CNV) in rats after corneal alkali burn. Methods Animal models of corneal alkali burn were made in Sprague-Dawley(SD) rats, which were divided into normal control group, model control group, low-concentration gigantol group, high-concentration gigantol group and aflibercept group, with 10 rats in each group. The rats in low-concentration gigantol group, high-concentration gigantol group and aflibercept group were treated with 2.5 mg/0.05 mL gigantol, 5 mg/0.05 mL gigantol, 2 mg/0.05 mL aflibercept by subconjunctival injection after modeling. The CNV, corneal opacity score and the thickness of the cornea was observed and compared on the 3rd, 7th and 14th day after alkali burn. The ratio of CNV area to corneal area was calculated. On the 14th day, all rats were sacrificed. HE staining and immunohistochemistry were used to detect the expression of CD34 and VEGF. The proteins expression of VEGF, IL-1β and TNF-α was detected by ELISA. Results On the 3rd, 7th, and 14th day after alkali burn in rats, the percentage of CNV to total corneal area in low-concentration gigantol group, high-concentration gigantol group and aflibercept group were significantly smaller than that in model control group (all P < 0.05). On the 14th day, the corneal opacity score was lower in high-concentration gigantol group than that in model control group (P < 0.05). The corneal thickness in model control group and low-concentration gigantol group were significantly thicker than that in normal control group (both P < 0.001). However, the corneal thickness in high-concentration gigantol group and aflibercept group were not significantly different from that in the normal control group (both P > 0.05). In addition, compared with model control group, the protein expressions of VEGF, IL-1β, and TNF-α in corneal tissues in low-concentration gigantol group, high-concentration gigantol group and aflibercept group were significantly lower (all P<0.01). Conclusion Gigantol by subconjunctival injection can inhibit the formation of CNV in rats after alkali burn and promote the absorption of corneal edema.