rss
Br J Ophthalmol 2006;90:55-58 doi:10.1136/bjo.2005.071910
  • Clinical science
    • Extended reports

Epithelial proliferative potential of organ cultured corneoscleral rims; implications for allo-limbal transplantation and eye banking

  1. V A Shanmuganathan1,
  2. A P Rotchford1,
  3. A B Tullo2,
  4. A Joseph1,
  5. I Zambrano2,
  6. H S Dua1
  1. 1The Larry Donoso Laboratory, Division of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, University of Nottingham, UK
  2. 2David Lucas Eye Bank, Manchester Royal Eye Hospital, Manchester, UK
  1. Correspondence to: Professor Harminder S Dua Division of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, B Floor, Eye & ENT Centre, University Hospital, Nottingham NG7 2UH, UK; harminder.dua{at}nottingham.ac.uk
  • Accepted 4 August 2005

Abstract

Aims: To determine the epithelial proliferative capacity of organ cultured limbal tissue and correlate this with various donor and eye banking factors.

Methods: 24 corneoscleral limbal (CSL) rims left over from penetrating keratoplasty were split in half and set up as in vitro explant cultures. Corneal epithelial proliferative potential (CEPP) was assessed by the number of “cycles” of growth achieved before explants underwent exhaustion and failure to generate an epithelium to subconfluence. The dependence of CEPP on the age of the donor, time of death to enucleation, time of enucleation to organ culture, and time in organ culture in the eye bank was determined.

Results: CSL rims were capable of up to four cycles of culture with a wide variation between tissue samples. Of the various factors examined, death to enucleation time was the only statistically significant factor affecting the CEPP (regression coefficient: −0.062 (cycles/hour), CI −0.119 to −0.004, p  = 0.037). Time in organ culture had little effect on CEPP.

Conclusions: Preselected organ cultured CSL rims from eye banks may offer a viable alternative tissue source for use in allo-limbal transplantation.

Footnotes

  • This work has been supported by grants from the Henry Smith Charity and the Charles Hayward Foundation.

  • This work was an oral presentation at the European Eye Bank Association (EEBA) meeting, January 2004 in Barcelona and at the 8th Nottingham Eye Symposium and Research Meeting January 2004.

This Article

  1. Abstract
  2. Full text
  3. PDF

Responses

  1. Submit a response
  2. No responses published

Register for free content

The full back archive is now available for all BMJ Journals. Institutional subscribers may access the entire archive as part of their subscription. Personal subscribers will also have access to all content when logged in. Non-subscribers who register have free access to all articles published before 2006 right back to volume 1 issue 1. Register here to access the free archive of all BMJ Journals.

Don't forget to sign up for content alerts so you keep up to date with all the articles as they are published.