Age‐related development of a refractive index plateau in the human lens: evidence for a distinct nucleus

Abstract

The human lens comprises two distinct regions in which the refractive index changes at different rates. The periphery contains a rapidly increasing refractive index gradient, which becomes steeper with age. The inner region contains a shallow gradient, which flattens with age, due to formation of a central plateau, of RI = 1.418, which reaches a maximum size of 7.0 × 3.05-mm around age 60 years. Formation of the plateau can be attributed to compression of fibre cells generated in prenatal life. Present in prenatal but not in postnatal fibre cells, γ‐crystallin may play a role in limiting nuclear cell compression.

Key words:

• gradient
• growth
• lens
• nucleus
• refraction
• RI plateau

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

This work was supported by NIH consortium grant RO1EYO14225, the Cooperative Research Centre Scheme of Australia and Queensland University of Technology.