This article outlines a surgical procedure for excising the nictitating membrane in rabbits, detailing the necessary anesthesia and surgical techniques. The method allows for further experimentation on the isolated membrane and the rabbit's eye.
Begin with a restrained rabbit and add a topical anesthesia solution to the target eye for temporary sedation. Gently insert a wire speculum between the eyelids to reveal the underlying nictitating membrane - the third eyelid. The nictitating membrane is a thin, transparent membrane at the corner of the eye that draws across it, protecting it against foreign particles and moistening it.
Using forceps, grasp the membrane from its apex and pull it over the cornea. Now, take a syringe filled with epinephrine solution and inject it into the subconjunctival space between the conjunctiva and sclera. Remove the wire speculum and forceps. Allow the solution to circulate briefly.
Epinephrine solution provides a fluid interface between the cornea and the nictitating membrane. It also causes a drop in the eye pressure, resulting in a bleb over the nictitating membrane. Place the wire speculum back into the eye. Gently grasp the nictitating membrane. Using surgical scissors, make a radial cut along the membrane's base to excise it.
Remove the wire speculum. Add an antibiotic solution to prevent any infection. Allow the eye to stabilize. Eventually, the isolated nictitating membrane and rabbit's eye can be used for further experiments.
Begin by bilaterally removing the nictitating membrane. Use a micropipette to apply 25 microliters of preservative-free 1% lidocaine to the eye, and insert a lid speculum between the eyelids. Grasp the nictitating membrane at its apex with 0.3 forceps and pull it over the corneal surface, then, inject approximately 0.3 milliliters of 1% lidocaine with 1:100,000 epinephrine into the subconjunctival space using a 26-gauge needle. This will form a modest-sized bleb over the nictitating membrane.
Remove the wire speculum and wait approximately five minutes for the lidocaine and epinephrine to take effect. Meanwhile, perform the same procedure on the other eye. When ready, replace the wire speculum. Grasp and extend the nictitating membrane over the corneal surface with the forceps, and cut the membrane at its base with tenotomy scissors. Remove the wire speculum and place topical antibiotic ointment over the corneal surface.
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