A Review of the Principles, Methodologies and Characteristics of Dry Eye Animal Models

Dry eye disease is one of the most prevalent diseases on the ocular surface, which can cause discomfort and visual impairment in patients. As a chronic disorder, dry eye can be caused by various factors, including reduced tear film stability, increased tear osmotic pressure and inflammation response on the ocular surface. Due to its complex and still unclear pathogenesis, many challenges related to the diagnosis and treatment of dry eye must be addressed through animal studies. An ideal animal model for dry eye is essential to the research on the pathogenesis, diagnosis, and treatment of the disease. However, there is a lack of comprehensive systematic reviews evaluating diverse methodologies employed in the development of related animal models. This review summarizes the principles, methodologies, and characteristics of different dry eye animal models, aiming to provide references for selecting relevant dry eye models for drug modeling, lacrimal gland resection, meibomian gland dysfunction, autoimmune, and environmental modeling.