Comparative study between amniotic-fluid mesenchymal stem cells and retinal pigmented epithelium (RPE) stem cells...

Dysfunction of the retinal pigmented epithelium (RPE) is one of the first effects of dry age-related macular degeneration (AMD) with consequent blindness. Hence, patients affected by this retinal disorder could benefit from a cell-based transplantation strategy for RPE. Actually, an effective protocol to approach this problem is lacking, though recently, it has been postulated the existence of a subpopulation of RPE stem cells (RPESCs) derived from adult RPE and able to reconstitute a functional RPE. On the other hand, the evidence related to the differentiative potential of human mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) is continuously increasing. Among others, amniotic fluid-derived MSCs (AF-MSCs) may be a promising candidate, since these cells are characterized by high proliferation and differentiative potential. In this study, AF-MSCs and RPESCs were isolated, characterized to assay their stemness and induced to neuronal/retinal differentiation; specific RPE markers were then analyzed. Our results indicate that RPESCs are more suitable candidates for RPE replacement than AF-MSCs.