Abstract
1. The water content of the human crystallaline lens nucleus is 63·4% S.D. ± 2·9%, and cortex 68·6% S.D. ± 4·3%.
2. Neither the total water content of the cortex, nor that of the nucleus show any significant changes with age, so `sclerosis' of the lens due to loss of water is not a cause of presbyopia.
3. The initial loss of water from the nucleus of the lens substance obtained by drying in vacuo at 20° C for 2 hr is related to age (P = 0·05) and deformability (0·02 > P > 0·01).
4. The lens fibres of the ageing nucleus have an increased resistance to deformation associated with a decrease in initial water loss. These characteristics can be explained by a common physical property of the fibres, namely increased adhesion to each other as the lens nucleus ages. The newly formed cortical fibres do not appear to show these changes.
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Selected References
These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.
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