A
group of experts announces the creation of an early
retina, an eight-layered structure that could one day
be perfected to the point where it could replace damaged
retinas in people losing their sight. The bioengineering
innovation was achieved at the University of California
in Irvine (UCI), where scientists used embryonic stem
cells for the job. The three-dimensional (3D) tissue
is the first to be produced using this type of cells,
and represents an impressive advance in science.
An artificial retina could have the ability to change
the lives of millions of people, who are currently suffering
from conditions such as retinitis pigmentosa and macular
degeneration. These progressive diseases eventually
lead to complete or total loss of sight, but a retinal
implant would help avert this outcome, the UCI group
believes. “We made a complex structure consisting
of many cell types. This is a major advance in our quest
to treat retinal disease,” explains UCI Reeve-Irvine
Research Center and the Sue and Bill Gross Stem Cell
Research Center member Hans Keirstead, the leader of
the new study.
“Creating this complex tissue is a first for the
stem cell field. Dr. Gabriel Nistor in our group addressed
a really interesting scientific problem with an engineering
solution, showing that gradients of solutions can create
complex stem cell-based tissues,” the expert adds.
He says that creating the gradient solutions that were
used to make the embryonic stem cells differentiate
into the specific cell types needed for the artificial
retina was the biggest challenge in their research.
Details of the investigation were published in the latest
online issue of the esteemed Journal of Neuroscience
Methods.
“What’s so exciting with our discovery is
that creating transplantable retinas from stem cells
could help millions of people, and we are well on the
way,” Keirstead adds, referring to the 10 million
US citizens who are currently suffering from macular
degeneration. An additional 100,000 have retinitis pigmentosa,
which is a relatively rare genetic disorder. The Keirstead
group was supported in the new study by grants from
The Lincy Foundation, as well as by private investigators. |
