A scientist from the University of Nottingham has discovered a new human body part. The layer of the cornea in a human eyeball that science was previously unaware of is only 15 microns thick.

A scientist from the University of Nottingham has discovered a new human body part.
The layer of the cornea in a human eyeball that science was previously unaware of is only 15 microns thick.

That thin layer of the cornea has been named Dua’s layer, after Harminder Dua, a professor of ophthalmology and Visual Sciences who discovered it.

Dua said: “This…major discovery… will mean that ophthalmology textbooks will literally need to be re-written.….there are many diseases that affect the back of the cornea which clinicians across the world are already beginning to relate to the presence, absence or tear in this layer.”

Researchers confirmed the existence of Dua’s layer when they were doing a simulation corneal transplant.

They injected bubbles into the cornea to separate the layers, and then put the layers under an electron microscope, which let the scientists look at images magnified to thousands of times their actual size.

The discovery will help scientists and doctors to better understand and treat different corneal diseases.