Tear lipidomics profiling reveals ocular-surface lipid remodeling associated with organelle stress in a mouse model of inflammatory dry eye disease

ABSTRACT: This study aimed to determine whether dry eye disease (DED) is accompanied by ocular-surface lipid remodeling and whether such changes converge on organelle stress–associated pathways in a mouse model of inflammatory dry eye. Tear samples were collected from mice and analyzed by LC–MS/MS–based non-targeted lipidomics using a standardized workflow for sample collection, data acquisition, and computational processing. Global differential analysis revealed extensive alterations in tear lipid composition, with a substantial number of lipid features significantly upregulated or downregulated in the dry eye group compared with healthy controls, indicating robust metabolic remodeling rather than stochastic variation. Among the significantly altered lipid species, multiple lipid classes involved in membrane homeostasis and lipid signaling were prominently dysregulated, including phospholipid and fatty acid–associated species such as PE, PC, PI, and free fatty acids, which showed coordinated changes. These lipid shifts collectively indicated disruption of lipid programs that support membrane remodeling and stress adaptation at the ocular surface, consistent with a pathological state characterized by inflammatory stress and epithelial vulnerability. Pathway enrichment analysis of differentially abundant lipids further supported this interpretation, with dysregulated lipids enriched in pathways involved in glycerophospholipid metabolism, arachidonic acid/linoleic acid metabolism, and additional stress- and inflammation-associated programs, linking tear lipid remodeling to inflammatory amplification and impaired barrier homeostasis. This dataset provides a comprehensive resource for understanding tear lipid metabolic reprogramming at the ocular surface in a mouse model of inflammatory dry eye disease.

INSTRUMENT(S): Liquid Chromatography MS - negative - reverse-phase, Liquid Chromatography MS - positive - reverse-phase

PROVIDER: MTBLS14217 | MetaboLights | 2026-04-04

REPOSITORIES: MetaboLights