May 30, 2024 at 3PM (EST)
Michael Getz, Indiana University, will discuss: Towards a Virtual Cornea
Predicting corneal injury and recovery following chemical exposures is crucial for risk assessment and regulatory decision-making. Following chemical or physical injury the cornea invokes complex autocrine or paracrine interactions relating biophysical, electrophysiological, and physiological cues which can be difficult to recapitulate in vitro or extrapolate from data-based Machine Learning or molecular-level computer simulations. Solving this spatiotemporal nature of corneal wound healing is not trivial requiring multicellular simulations. To investigate this issue, we present Virtual Cornea, a two-dimensional agent-based model developed in CompuCell3D and Tissue Forge. Virtual Cornea is a Virtual Tissue (VT) model that aims to simulate cellular interactions and processes underlying homeostasis, injury response, and long-term recovery to further risk prediction methods. The model includes tear film, epithelium, epithelial basement membrane, and the stroma and their associated components. Of interest, is the mechanical contribution of the extracellular matrix in the stromal layers and their effect on both the opacity and long-term recovery of the VCornea and the effect of chemical barrier functions through the basement membrane.