In a significant breakthrough, a team of scientists have successfully transplanted cultured stem cells from the healthy eye to the diseased one, bringing light to the people who nearly lost their sight in accidents.Sustaining the current excitement about stem cells, in all 33 patients who suffered from conditions such as chemical burns, allergic reactions to drug and auto-immune diseases causing damage to the part of the eye called limbus, were successfully treated through this method in the last few months.
Stem cells are found in limbus, which regenerates the ocular surface of the cornea. Conditions such as chemical burns, damages the limbus resulting in limbal stem cell deficiency characterised by corneal blindness.The advantages of this procedure were use of patient's own tissue from the healthy eye to treat the diseased one avoiding the risk rejection, which is generally the case with cadaveric tissue.
