conjunctival epithelium

Conjunctival epithelium undergoes hyperplasia and sends downward projection into sub-epithelial tissue.

Additional cells present in the conjunctival epithelium include melanocytes, T and B cell lymphocytes.

Some pathogens able to infect the conjunctiva, such as Neisseria gonorrhoeae and Chlamydia trachomatis are thought to have special processes allowing them to attach to the conjunctival epithelium.

Xerophthalmia is a term that usually implies a destructive dryness of the conjunctival epithelium due to dietary vitamin A deficiency - a rare condition in developed countries, but still causing much damage in developing countries.

It is continuous with the conjunctival epithelium, and is composed of about 6 layers of cells which are shed constantly on the exposed layer and are regenerated by multiplication in the basal layer.