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In a breakthrough operation, American and British scientists recently restored the sight of blind mice using a retinal stem cell transplant.*
The animals suffered blindness due to the loss of photoreceptor (light-sensing) cells that line the back of the eye, or retina. The functional loss of these cells causes some of the more common forms of adult blindness, including macular degeneration.
Previous attempts to restore vision using transplanted stem cells failed because the cells master cells with the potential to become any type of cell in the body did not develop into photoreceptors. By using precursor cells already programmed to become photoreceptors, the scientists were able to successfully restore the animalsโ€ vision.
The study authors say continuing research could lead to the first human retinal cell transplants within a decadeโ€”a potential boon for those suffering from age-related loss of vision.
Robert Gaston
Reference
* MacLaren RE, Pearson RA, MacNeil A, et al. Retinal repair by transplantation of photoreceptor precursors. Nature. 2006 Nov 9;444 (7116):203-7.
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