The interior surface of the treated eye of a patient with Stargardt macular dystrophy a year following surgerySTEM CELL REPORTS, W.K. SONG ET AL.Scientists in Korea have injected human embryonic stem cell (hESC)-derived retinal support cells into the eyes of four men with macular degeneration, according to a study published today (April 30) in Stem Cell Reports. Three of the men experienced vision improvements in their treated eyes in the year following the procedure, while the fourth man’s vision remained largely the same. The trial adds to growing evidence that injecting hESC-derived cells is feasible, feeding hopes for their future therapeutic use.
This latest study follows on two papers published in The Lancet in 2012 and 2014, which similarly demonstrated that hESC-derived cells could be safely injected into the space behind the retina in macular degeneration patients. These studies, sponsored by the Massachusetts-based company Advanced Cell Technology (now Ocata Therapeutics), were the first published accounts describing the application of hESC-based therapies in humans.
Korean company CHA Biotech carried out the new trial. Ocata provided the hESCs and some methodological instruction. “Together with the results here in the US, I think this bodes well for the future of stem cell therapies,” said study coauthor Robert Lanza, chief scientific officer at Ocata.
Jeanne Loring, a stem cell researcher at the Scripps Research Institute in La Jolla, California, agreed that ...
