More than 10 million people in the United States are blind orvisually impaired, and 50,000 more will become blind each year.The results of a survey conducted by the American Foundationfor the Blind indicate that people with diabetes fear blindnesseven more than premature death.1 Retinal repair by means ofthe transplantation of photoreceptor precursors, recently describedby MacLaren and colleagues,2 thus holds hope for many people.
Blindness is often caused by degenerative conditions in whichthe sensory cells in the retina deteriorate and die. Such conditionsinclude retinitis pigmentosa and age-related macular degeneration.Photoreceptors do not divide . . . [Full Text of this Article]
Source Information
From Scheie Eye Institute, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia.
Liang, L., Yan, R.-T., Li, X., Chimento, M., Wang, S.-Z.
(2008). Reprogramming Progeny Cells of Embryonic RPE to Produce Photoreceptors: Development of Advanced Photoreceptor Traits under the Induction of neuroD. IOVS
49: 4145-4153
[Abstract][Full Text]