RIPK2 and ocular melanoma: Herein, we used in vivo animal models including C57BL/6 wild-type (WT) and RIP2−/− knockout mice inoculated in the middle ear (ME) with non-typeable Haemophilus influenzae (NTHi), a common human OM pathogen, to evaluate the expression of RIP2 and its signaling genes at the cellular level to determine the role of RIP2 in OM pathogenesis and recovery.