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Blood derived stem cells: An ameliorative therapy in veterinary ophthalmology
Author(s) -
Marfe Gabriella,
MassaroGiordano Mina,
Ranalli Marco,
Cozzoli Eliana,
Di Stefano Carla,
Malafoglia Valentina,
Polettini Marco,
Gambacurta Alessandra
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
journal of cellular physiology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.529
H-Index - 174
eISSN - 1097-4652
pISSN - 0021-9541
DOI - 10.1002/jcp.22953
Subject(s) - medicine , cornea , disease , keratitis , stem cell , ophthalmology , corneal diseases , surgery , dermatology , pathology , biology , genetics
Abstract Stem cell technology has evoked considerable excitement among people interested in the welfare of animals, as it has suggested the potential availability of new tools for several pathologies, including eye disease, which in many cases is considered incurable. One such example is ulcerative keratitis, which is very frequent in horses. Because some of these corneal ulcers can be very severe, progress rapidly and, therefore, can be a possible cause of vision loss, it is important to diagnose them at an early stage and administer an appropriate treatment, which can be medical, surgical, or a combination of both. The therapeutic strategy should eradicate the infection in order to reduce or stop destruction of the cornea. In addition, it should support the corneal structures and control the uveal reaction, and the pain associated with it, in order to minimize scarring. In this study, we address how stem cells derived from peripheral blood can be used also in ophthalmological pathologies. Our results demonstrate that this treatment protocol improved eye disease in four horse cases, including corneal ulcers and one case of retinal detachment. In all cases, we detected a decrease in the intense inflammatory reaction as well as the restoration of the epithelial surface of the central cornea. J. Cell. Physiol. 227: 1250–1256, 2012. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.