Collagen-immobilized hydrogel as a material for lamellar keratoplasty

A transparent poly(vinyl alcohol) hydrogel disc covalently immobilized with Type I collagen, fibronectin, and an adhesive oligopeptide and preseeded with corneal epithelial cells was implanted in the rabbit cornea using a technique of lamellar keratoplasty, and the tissue response was studied by light and electron microscopy. Covalent immobilization of type I collagen on the surface of hydrogel was found to support growth and adhesion of the corneal epithelium in vitro. The in vivo experiment showed that cell seeding could prevent infection of the hydrogel. However, the implanted disc was rejected from the host cornea by epithelial downgrowth and the exchange between the seeded cells and host corneal epithelia was not observed until 14 days after surgery. The rejection might have occurred because of unsatisfactory fixation of the hydrogel to the host cornea.