stem cell research | LVATUG blog

Posted: December 16, 2014 at 4:51 am

October 18, 2014

The study (pdf) represents the first evidence for the long-term safety of the pioneering therapy, which restored some vision to more than half of the patients who took part in the trial.

There had been concerns that the cells could be rejected by the bodys immune system or become overactive and grow into tumours. But after following the patients for up to three years, researchers said the treatment appeared to be safe.

The trial focused on 18 patients with two different types of macular degeneration (9 with Stargardts, 9 with dry AMD ). The diseases have no effective treatments and are among the leading causes of blindness in adults and children in the developed world.

Effectiveness is yet to be proven.

For more info:

http://www.theguardian.com/science/2014/oct/15/stem-cell-success-in-treating-macular-degeneration

http://download.thelancet.com/flatcontentassets/pdfs/S0140673614613763.pdf

Leave a Comment | Uncategorized | Tagged: AMD, Stargardts, stem cell research | Permalink Posted by lvatug

Scientists at the University of Southampton have discovered stem cells in the human eye which can be transformed into light sensitive cells and potentially reverse blindness. Thereservoir of stem cells is in an area of the eye called the corneal limbus.It could offer a potential cure for the hundreds of thousands of people suffering macular degeneration or retinitis pigmentosa, which are both caused by the loss of photo-receptor cells in the eye. For more info: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/science-news/11133622/Hope-for-blind-as-scientists-find-stem-cell-reservoir-in-human-eye.html

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stem cell research | LVATUG blog

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