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Updated: Aug 21, 2026
Generation of Retinal Organoids from Healthy and Retinal Disease-Specific Human-Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells
Published on: December 9, 2022
Multipotent retinal progenitors express developmental markers, differentiate into retinal neurons, and preserve
Henry J Klassen1, Tat Fong Ng, Yasuo Kurimoto
1Schepens Eye Research Institute, Department of Ophthalmology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts 02114, USA.
Purpose:
To use progenitor cells isolated from the neural retina for transplantation studies in mice with retinal degeneration.
Methods:
Retinal progenitor cells from postnatal day 1 green fluorescent protein-transgenic mice were isolated and characterized. These cells can be expanded greatly in culture and express markers characteristic of neural progenitor cells and/or retinal development.
Results:
After they were grafted to the degenerating retina of mature mice, a subset of the retinal progenitor cells developed into mature neurons, including presumptive photoreceptors expressing recoverin, rhodopsin, or cone opsin. In rho-/- hosts, there was rescue of cells in the outer nuclear layer (ONL), along with widespread integration of donor cells into the inner retina, and recipient mice showed improved light-mediated behavior compared with control animals.
Conclusions:
These findings have implications for the treatment of retinal degeneration, in which neuronal replacement and photoreceptor rescue are major therapeutic goals.
