 This pilot study examined the ocular microbiome of patients with keratoconjunctivitis cica, caseis, also known as dry eye disease, DED, and compared it to the ocular microbiome of healthy individuals. The researchers found that the bacterial populations in caseis patients were significantly different from those in healthy individuals, with formicutes being the most abundant phylum in both groups. However, four specific bacterial genera, acinetobacter, corine bacterium, lactobacillus, and pseudomonas SPP were present at much lower levels in caseis patients. These findings suggest that the ocular microbiome may play a role in the development of caseis, and further studies are needed to explore this possibility. This article was authored by Nupur Gupta, Jyoti Chibbar Goyal, Yogita Gupta, and others.