Promoting vascular repair in the retina: can stem/progenitor cells help?

Since its first epidemic in the 1940s, retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) has been a challenging illness in neonatology. Higher than physiological oxygen levels impede the development of the immature retinal neuropil and vasculature. Current treatment regimens include cryotherapy, laser photocoagulati...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Eye and brain 2016-01, Vol.8 (Issue 1), p.113-122
Main Authors: Trinh, Thao Le Phuong, Li Calzi, Sergio, Shaw, Lynn C, Yoder, Mervin C, Grant, Maria B
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Angiogenesis
Bone marrow
CD34+ cells
Cell division
Diabetes
Diabetic retinopathy
endothelial colony forming cells
endothelial progenitor cells
Hypoxia
Insulin-like growth factors
Ischemia
Lasers
Medical prognosis
oxygen-induced retinopathy
Proteins
Retina
Retinopathy of prematurity
Review
ROP therapy
Stem cells
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Summary:Since its first epidemic in the 1940s, retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) has been a challenging illness in neonatology. Higher than physiological oxygen levels impede the development of the immature retinal neuropil and vasculature. Current treatment regimens include cryotherapy, laser photocoagulation, and anti-VEGF agents. Unfortunately, none of these approaches can rescue the normal retinal vasculature, and each has significant safety concerns. The limitations of these approaches have led to new efforts to understand the pathological characteristics in each phase of ROP and to find a safer and more effective therapeutic approach. In the era of stem cell biology and with the need for new treatments for ROP, this review discusses the possible future use of unique populations of proangiogenic cells for therapeutic revascularization of the preterm retina.
ISSN:1179-2744
1179-2744
DOI:10.2147/EB.S94451