Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 10, 2026
Corneal Tissue Engineering: An In Vitro Model of the Stromal-nerve Interactions of the Human Cornea
Published on: January 24, 2018
Novel materials to enhance corneal epithelial cell migration on keratoprosthesis
Akbar Karkhaneh1, Hamid Mirzadeh, Alireza Ghaffariyeh
1Dr Khodadoust Eye Hospital, Motahari Avenue, Shiraz, Fars, Iran.
Purpose:
To introduce a new modification for silicone optical core Keratoprosthesis.
Methods:
Using mixtures of 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate and acrylic acid polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) films were modified with two-step oxygen plasma treatment, and then type I collagen was immobilised onto this modified surfaces. Both the biocompatibility of the modified films and cell behaviour on the surface of these films were investigated by in vitro tests, and formation of epithelial cell layer was evaluated by implantation of the modified films in the corneas of 10 rabbits.
Results:
In vitro studies indicated that the number of attached and proliferated cells onto modified PDMS in comparison with the unmodified PDMS significantly increased. Histological studies showed that corneal epithelial cells migrated on the anterior surface of the modified films after 1week. The corneal epithelial cell formed an incomplete monolayer cellular sheet after 10days. A complete epithelialisation on the modified surface was formed after 21days. The epithelial layer persisted on the anterior surface of implant after 1-month and 3-month follow-up.
Conclusion:
This method may have potential use in silicone optical core Keratoprosthesis.
