Limbal Epithelial Stem Cells in Corneal Regeneration

The cornea is the transparent and outer most part of the eye, which is responsible for clear vision. The homeostasis of corneal epithelium is maintained by stem cells (SCs) located at the limbus, which is a transitional zone between cornea and conjunctiva. Due to some conditions limbal stem cells (L...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Shweta Sharma, M. Vanathi, Sujata Mohanty, Radhika Tandon
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Wolters Kluwer Medknow Publications 2013-07-01
Series:Delhi Journal of Ophthalmology
Subjects:
Online Access:https://journals.lww.com/10.7869/djo.2013.9
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:The cornea is the transparent and outer most part of the eye, which is responsible for clear vision. The homeostasis of corneal epithelium is maintained by stem cells (SCs) located at the limbus, which is a transitional zone between cornea and conjunctiva. Due to some conditions limbal stem cells (LSCs) can be destroyed or lost and this can cause limbal stem cell deficiency (LSCD). Conventional non-surgical management and corneal transplants are not enough to treat LSCD. Recent advances in tissue engineering have made possible to rejuvenate the LSC deficit ocular surface with ex-vivo cultivated limbal epithelium and this is possible to achieve from a significantly small limbal biopsy. In spite of all progress made in this field, it is still questionable to identify LSCs based on the biomarkers. This review article will focus on the biology of LSCs and their emerging trend in the field of regenerative medicine. Apart from that this article will also highlight different culture techniques to cultivate LSCs and novel biofunctional scaffolds.
ISSN:0972-0200
2454-2784