{"id":49061,"date":"2010-09-13T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2010-09-13T05:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/2010\/09\/13\/research-discovery-shows-promise-as-novel-approach-for-restoring-lost-vision\/"},"modified":"2022-08-28T19:18:45","modified_gmt":"2022-08-29T00:18:45","slug":"research-discovery-shows-promise-as-novel-approach-for-restoring-lost-vision","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/2010\/09\/13\/research-discovery-shows-promise-as-novel-approach-for-restoring-lost-vision\/","title":{"rendered":"Research discovery shows promise as novel approach for restoring lost vision"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"panel body-content\"><div class=\"panel__container\"><p><b><i><span style=\"color: black\">Macular degeneration and retinitis pigmentosa being targeted <\/span><\/i><\/b><\/p>\n<div style=\"line-height: normal;margin: 0in 0in 0pt\"><span style=\"color: black\">A research study at the University of Nebraska Medical Center shows promise that adult stem cells within the retina can be chemically induced to regenerate photoreceptors and restore vision in people suffering from conditions such as <\/span><span style=\"color: black\">age-related macular degeneration (AMD) and retinitis pigmentosa (RP). <\/span><\/div>\n<div style=\"line-height: normal;margin: 0in 0in 0pt\">&nbsp;<\/div>\n<div style=\"line-height: normal;margin: 0in 0in 0pt\"><span style=\"color: black\">The research, which was done on mice and rats, is reported in the Aug. 26 edition of PLoS One, a leading science journal through the Public Library of Science. <\/span><\/div>\n<div style=\"line-height: normal;margin: 0in 0in 0pt\">&nbsp;<\/div>\n<div style=\"line-height: normal;margin: 0in 0in 0pt\"><span style=\"color: black\">The research represents the first indication that the retina can be repaired from within by its own cells. It would be a significant departure from transplantation of stem cells, which is now being studied for restoring lost vision. Retinal transplantation is an invasive procedure that brings with it a variety of concerns such as immune rejection and the source of cells.<\/span><\/div>\n<div style=\"line-height: normal;margin: 0in 0in 0pt\">&nbsp;<\/div>\n<div style=\"line-height: normal;margin: 0in 0in 0pt\"><span style=\"color: black\">&ldquo;This is really exciting,&rdquo; said Iqbal Ahmad, Ph.D., professor of ophthalmology and visual sciences for UNMC and the lead investigator on the study. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s a tantalizing stem cell approach to correct vision loss&hellip;to harness existing stem cells and coax them into repairing the retina.<\/span><\/div>\n<div style=\"line-height: normal;margin: 0in 0in 0pt\">&nbsp;<\/div>\n<div style=\"line-height: normal;margin: 0in 0in 0pt\"><span style=\"color: black\">&ldquo;Before, stem cell transplantation was regarded to be the only practical way to restore vision. This is a radically different approach, and best of all, it is relatively safe and free from controversy.&rdquo;<\/span><\/div>\n<div style=\"line-height: normal;margin: 0in 0in 0pt\">&nbsp;<\/div>\n<div style=\"line-height: normal;margin: 0in 0in 0pt\"><span style=\"color: black\">The degeneration of photoreceptors, cells in the retina that capture light, is the cause of vision loss in AMD and RP. Unfortunately, there is no treatment for photoreceptor degeneration. <\/span><\/div>\n<div style=\"line-height: normal;margin: 0in 0in 0pt\">&nbsp;<\/div>\n<div style=\"line-height: normal;margin: 0in 0in 0pt\"><span style=\"color: black\">In the study, which spanned four years, Dr. Ahmad and his team, led by Carolina Del Debbio, Ph.D., a postdoctoral associate, activated the adult stem cells taken from the retina with a combination of chemicals and peptides. <\/span><\/div>\n<div style=\"line-height: normal;margin: 0in 0in 0pt\">&nbsp;<\/div>\n<div style=\"line-height: normal;margin: 0in 0in 0pt\"><span style=\"color: black\">A small proportion of the activated stem cells migrated to the location of dying photoreceptors and differentiated into photoreceptor-like cells. These cells expressed proteins that are exclusively expressed by photoreceptors and help capture light. <\/span><\/div>\n<div style=\"line-height: normal;margin: 0in 0in 0pt\">&nbsp;<\/div>\n<div style=\"line-height: normal;margin: 0in 0in 0pt\"><span style=\"color: black\">An accompanying result was that rats that were chemically treated demonstrated a transient but significant improvement in light perception. Preliminary results suggest that the improvement in light perception is likely due to the regeneration of photoreceptors, but further studies are needed to confirm it, Dr. Ahmad said.<\/span><\/div>\n<div style=\"line-height: normal;margin: 0in 0in 0pt\">&nbsp;<\/div>\n<div style=\"line-height: normal;margin: 0in 0in 0pt\"><span style=\"color: black\">&ldquo;We next need to learn how to increase the efficiency of activating cells and making them photoreceptors,&rdquo; Dr. Ahmad said.<\/span><\/div>\n<div style=\"line-height: normal;margin: 0in 0in 0pt\">&nbsp;<\/div>\n<div style=\"line-height: normal;margin: 0in 0in 0pt\"><i><span style=\"color: black;font-size: 10pt\">Through world-class research and patient care, UNMC generates breakthroughs that make life better for people throughout Nebraska and beyond. Its education programs train more health professionals than any other institution in the state. Learn more at unmc.edu. <\/span><\/i><\/div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<div style=\"display: none;\"><a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"\/secure-location.php\" title=\"IeWq pQJojbV s eYNTfVbnTg\">IeWq pQJojbV s eYNTfVbnTg<\/a><\/div><\/div><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Macular degeneration and retinitis pigmentosa being targeted A research study at the University of Nebraska Medical Center shows promise that adult stem cells within the retina can be chemically induced to regenerate photoreceptors and restore vision in people suffering from conditions such as age-related macular degeneration (AMD) and retinitis pigmentosa (RP). &nbsp; The research, which [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":79,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_relevanssi_hide_post":"","_relevanssi_hide_content":"","_relevanssi_pin_for_all":"","_relevanssi_pin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_unpin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_include_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_exclude_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_no_append":"","_relevanssi_related_not_related":"","_relevanssi_related_posts":"","_relevanssi_noindex_reason":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-49061","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","department-press-release"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.4 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Research discovery shows promise as novel approach for restoring lost vision<\/title>\n<meta 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