FFB Written Articles » Usher Syndrome
Researchers Coax the Retina into Rebuilding Itself
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In a pioneering study at the University of Washington, FFB-funded researchers discovered a way to prod retinal cells to regenerate after injury. If perfected, the approach could be used to restore retinal tissue, and vision, for people with a variety of retinal degenerative diseases including retinitis pigmentosa and macular degeneration. “This has the potential to be a very elegant approach to treating a number of retinal diseases,” says Stephen Rose, Ph.D., chief research officer, Foundation Fighting Blindness. “Instead of transplanting foreign cells or tissue, you are enabling the retina to heal and rebuild itself. Because it is a person’s own retinal tissue, we shouldn’t have to worry about the tissue being rejected.”
"Transplantation involves a tricky surgery; the cells may not go exactly where you want them to go," says Thomas Reh, Ph.D., lead study investigator. "Developing methods to stimulate regeneration may prove to be the best option in the long run." Dr. Reh and his colleagues used a cocktail of proteins — also known as growth factors — to stimulate the growth of damaged inner retinal cells in mice. The growth factors coaxed the cells into regressing to an immature state. Subsequently, the immature cells began to proliferate into larger numbers of mature, healthy cells of the inner retina. Reh and his team believe a similar approach can be used to regenerate photoreceptors, which are cells in the outer retina that enable people to see. Dr. Reh notes that retinal regeneration has been demonstrated before in lower-level vertebrates such as chicken and fish, but never before in mammals. The results of this study were published in the November online edition of Proceedings of the National Academy of Science.
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