Eat Your Neighbour

In much the same way that Pac-Man chomps through a maze of dots in the classic computer game, cells in the lens of the eye can gobble up their neighbours if they sense they're dying. This cannibal-like tendency, called phagocytosis, prevents debris from dead cells impairing vision by clouding the lens, which is constantly bombarded by destructive ultra-violet (UV) light. Pictured are epithelial cells in a chicken embryo lens eating ‘fake’ dead cells made from latex (green-white dots) that were inserted during a laboratory experiment. Scientists identified a receptor on the epithelial cells that triggered them into action – and also discovered that UV light slowly degrades these receptors, explaining why clouding of the lens, or cataracts, may occur eventually in some people.

Written by Mick Warwicker

Mick Warwicker

Writer

A freelance communications consultant and writer, Mick specialises in science and education. A science graduate and award-winning print and broadcast journalist, he was Head of Communications at Newcastle University from 2000–2011.

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• Image courtesy of Florida Atlantic University
• Florida Atlantic University, USA
• Image copyright held by original authors
• Research published in Journal of Biological Chemistry, November 2015