Recently, scientists Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, CA, have shown that they can slow down vision loss due to AMD by a single stem cell injection. AMD (Age-related macular degeneration) is a degenerative disease that occurs due to the deterioration of the macula, the central part of the retina that is responsible for sensing light. People who suffer from AMD gradually lose their vision completely and there is no known cure for this condition.
But scientists at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center have been able to significantly slow this process in AMD rats. The created induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) from epithelial cells and the converted these iPSCs into induced neural progenitor stem cells (iNPSCs). On injecting these iNPSCs cells into AMD rats , the AMD progression slowed by 130 days which is equivalent of 16 years in humans. This study shows the amazing promise of stem cells in treatments for AMD.
The team now aims to carry out preclinical trials on animals to test the efficiency and safety of stem cells injection before clinical trails can begin on people who are suffering from later stages of AMD.
Article summary courtesy by Waleed Khan
Article: Medical News Today
References:
Human iPSC-derived neural progenitors preserve vision in an AMD-like model, Yuchun Tsai, et al., Stem Cells, doi:10.1002/stem.2032, published online 13 April 2015, abstract.