Smoking is a risk factor for the development of microbial keratitis and corneal infiltrates in contact lens (CL) wearers. It is still unknown if this risk is directly associated with the presence of nicotine in the eye and if adherence of nicotine on the CL can enhance these effects. A better understanding of the interaction between nicotine and CL materials could offer insights to explain this risk associated with smoking. The aim of this work was to compare the affinity of nicotine to different soft CL materials. CLs from FDA groups I, II, IV, and V were incubated in a 2-mM nicotine solution for 24 h and then in a 0.9% saline solution for the next 24 h. The amount of absorbed and released nicotine per CL was deduced as a function of time (t) by ultraviolet (UV) spectrophotometry and normalised to the mass of the hydrated CL. The data were described by the equation y = b –a t⁻¹, where a and b are constants, and b represents the mass reached at the plateau after ~ 10 min of exposure. Groups IV and V displayed the highest (0.80 ± 0.09 µg) and lowest (0.27 ± 0.08 µg) nicotine absorption per mg of hydrated CL, respectively. The CL affinity for nicotine could be ascribed to the interaction between the positive charge of nicotine pyrrolidine nitrogen and the negative charges of the CLs, especially for the ionic IV group.

吸烟是发生微生物角膜炎的危险因素隐形眼镜 (CL) 佩戴者的角膜浸润。目前尚不清楚这种风险是否与眼睛中尼古丁的存在直接相关，以及尼古丁对 CL 的粘附是否可以增强这些影响。更好地了解尼古丁和 CL 材料之间的相互作用可以提供解释与吸烟相关的这种风险的见解。这项工作的目的是比较尼古丁对不同软 CL 材料的亲和力。来自 FDA I、II、IV 和 V 组的 CL 在 2 mM 尼古丁溶液中孵育 24 小时，然后在 0.9% 盐溶液中孵育接下来的 24 小时。每个 CL 吸收和释放的尼古丁量通过紫外 (UV) 分光光度法推断为时间 (t) 的函数，并归一化为水合 CL 的质量。数据由方程 y = b –at ^-1描述，其中 a 和 b 是常数，b 表示暴露约 10 分钟后在高原达到的质量。IV 组和 V 组分别显示每 mg 水合 CL 的最高 (0.80 ± 0.09 µg) 和最低 (0.27 ± 0.08 µg) 尼古丁吸收。CL对尼古丁的亲和力可归因于尼古丁吡咯烷氮的正电荷与CL的负电荷之间的相互作用，特别是对于离子IV基团。