Stem cell therapies for age-related macular degeneration: the past, present, and future.

摘要: In the developed world, age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is one of major causes irreversible blindness in elderly. Although management neovascular AMD (wet AMD) has dramatically progressed, there still no effective treatment for nonneovascular (dry AMD), which characterized by retinal pigment epithelial (RPE) cell death (or dysfunction) and microenvironmental disruption retina. Therefore, RPE replacement regulation represent viable treatments dry AMD. Recent advances biology have demonstrated that cells can be easily generated from several types (pluripotent stem cells, multipotent or even somatic cells) spontaneous differentiation, coculturing, defined factors reprogramming, respectively. Additionally, vivo studies also showed restoration visual function could obtained transplanting functional into subretinal space recipient. More importantly, clinical trials approved US government shown promising prospects transplantation. However, key issues such as implantation techniques, immune rejection, xeno-free techniques are needed to further investigated. This review will summarize recent transplantation The obstacles this field discussed.