Stem cell growth efficacious in treatment of disorders of the cornea
A new method of adult stem cell growth, designed in the Area of
Cellular Therapy of the University Clinic (University of Navarra),
has demonstrated its efficacy for its capacity to grow cornea stem
cells.
So Ana Fernández Hortelano, ophthalmologist at the Hospital
demonstrated on applying the growth technique in treating diseases of
the cornea, using stem cells, in 70 test animals (rabbits). The aim
of the procedure was to regain the da maged epithelium and thus
restore transparency to the cornea.
In concrete, the thesis defended by doctor Fernández Hortelano at the
Faculty of Medicine of the University of Navarra, proves the
therapeutic efficiency in using corneal stem cells in patients with
pathologies of the cornea, such as caustications or ocular herpes, by
using stem cells from a healthy contralateral eye. The technique is
being currently applied to patients with satisfactory results.
The research has two essential parts. On the one hand, it describes
the design of a new method of cell growth and, on the other, explains
the clinical application of the procedure.Growth in two stages
The research undertaken by the ophthalmologist has shown that, from a
small biopsy sample, the new growth technique enables the growth of
the number of stem cells thus obtained to the point of obtaining
sufficient for the treatment to be effective. The cell sample is
taken from the limb of the healthy eye – the ocular structure
responsible for the transparency of the cornea.
The importance of this growth method lies in the fact that it enables
the characterisation of the cells obtained, i.e. determining the
quantity and viability of the units to be used.
The method developed combines culture on a plastic chip with that of
an amniotic membrane one. The novelty of the technique focuses on the
first stage – where the plastic chip is used. The fragment of tissue
obtained from the healthy eye divides into smaller fractions which
are grown on the chip. Thus a greater number of halos of stem cells
are obtained (as many as the fragments of tissue). A sample of the
cells obtained are then sent the Anatomic Pathology laboratory where
the viability and quality of the cell units are verified.
The cells are transferred to the amniotic membrane growth culture,
one that is highly suitable when dealing with stem cells that are to
be transplanted for ocular regeneration treatment.
Once in the amniotic membrane, the stem cells expand in a homogeneous
manner, enabling a better cell identification in order to select the
most suitable units for the treatment. This method permits finding
out with precision the cell population that we are implanting in the
eye and to verify, thereby, both the quality and quantity of the
cells transplanted.
The second part of the research involved the clinical application of
the adult stem cells transplant in rabbits, which previously have had
an epithelial corneal lesion induced, causing loss of corneal
transparency. This is a pathology that does not respond to a corneal
transplant nor to other conventional treatment.
The procedure used by Dr Fernández Hortelano involved obtaining this
type of cell – corneal stem cells – by means of a biopsy of cells
from a healthy eye of the rabbit. This is a small sample of cells - 3
by 4 mm - and so the contrateral eye is not in danger. A tiny number
of cells thus being involved, it is necessary to grow the samples in
order to obtain greater numbers of cells, an expansion achieved by
transferring the culture to the amniotic membrane.
The adult stem cells obtained are implanted in the da maged eye and
the limb is regenerated, this leading to the recovery of the corneal
epithelium and, thereby, the transparency of the cornea. The results
to date achieved amongst the group of rabbits, with induced limbic
insufficiency and which then had a transplant of adult stem cells,
showed recovery of the corneal epithelium in 60% of the treated
animals. The corneal epithelium is the layer that is da maged with
limbic insufficiency, a problem which, in the long term, results in
opacity of the cornea.
http://www.spiritin
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StemCells subscribers may also be interested in these sites:
Children's Neurobiological Solutions
http://www.CNSfoundation.org/
Cord Blood Registry
http://www.CordBlood.com/at.cgi?a=150123
The CNS Healing Group
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CNS_Healing
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