A groundbreaking study has revealed that a transplant of human stem cells has successfully sealed a retinal hole in a monkey, significantly enhancing its vision and paving the way for potential new treatments for age-related sight loss.
As individuals age, the gel-like fluid in the eye can become thicker, pulling on the retina and resulting in tears that create holes in the tissue. This condition often leads to blurred or patchy vision. While doctors typically insert tissue from other areas of the eye to repair these holes, recurrences can happen in some cases.
In this innovative research, scientists at a leading eye hospital in Japan developed stem cells derived from human embryos into precursor cells resembling retinal cells. These cells were implanted into a 1-millimeter wide hole in the retina of a snow monkey that previously displayed vision difficulties in testing.
The research team conducted vision assessments with the monkey, focusing solely on its right eye. Initially, the monkey could only fix its gaze on 1.5 percent of the displayed dots. Remarkably, six months post-transplant, its ability improved, allowing it to focus on between 11 to 26 percent of the dots in subsequent tests.
These findings indicate that the transplant may have enhanced the monkey’s vision; however, the monkey is unable to communicate the extent of its improvement. Further studies with larger groups of non-human primates are necessary, but researchers are optimistic that similar methods could benefit humans, given the anatomical similarities between human and primate eyes.
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