Fight Aging! Newsletter, May 16th 2016

In this study the authors demonstrate that, as in many other cases, the methodology of delivery matters just as much as the details of the cells used:

Retinal and macular degenerative diseases affect millions of people worldwide. Similar to other neurodegenerative diseases, there are no effective treatments that can stop retinal degeneration or restore degenerative retina. Recent advances in stem cell technology led to development of novel cell-based therapies, some are already in phase I/II clinical trials. Studies from our group and others suggest that human bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells (hBM-MSC) may be a promising source for retinal cell-based therapy.

Currently, one of the major challenges in stem cell-based therapy is how to safely deliver effective doses of cells to the target posterior eye tissues (retina, retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) and choroid), due to the unique anatomy and physiology of the eye. The current subretinal injection method involves three port pars plana, vitrectomy and insertion of a needle that penetrates the retina and, in doing so, detaches the photoreceptor cell layer from the RPE forming subretinal 'blebs'. Limited volumes can be injected and therapeutic effect is restricted to areas proximal to point of injection. Moreover, the subretinal surgery raises a significant safety issue, as the retinal architecture across the entire retina in age-related macular degeneration (AMD) and retinitis pigmentosa (RP) patients...

Source: Fight Aging! - May 15, 2016 Category: Research Authors: Reason Tags: Newsletters Source Type: blogs