Dry eye animal models and dry eye drug development

Dry eye is the most common eye illness which manifests as a chronic inflammation on ocular surface and imposes significant threat to vision.Though dry eye is high prevalent, specific medication to treat this refractory disorder is very limited.The paucity of new drugs available can be attributed to wide range of severity distribution as well as lack of appropriate animal model.Animal disease model plays a significant role in preclinical drug screening and testing prior to clinical trial.Various techniques have been explored to create dry eye models for drug testing, including surgical removal of lacrimal gland, systemic or local drug induction, autoimmune eliciting, and genetic manipulation.This article reviewed the important dry eye models and their roles in development of dry eye drugs to provide insight and inspiration for clinicians and researchers. Key words: Dry eye; Animal models; Drug screening; Drug testing; Efficacy evaluation