Patients regain sight after being first to receive retinal tissue engineered from stem cells.
The results of this ground-breaking clinical study, published in Nature Biotech (http://rdcu.be/Js1a), described the implantation of a specially engineered patch of retinal pigment epithelium cells derived from stem cells to treat people with sudden severe sight loss from wet AMD. It is hoped that it will also help treat dry AMD in the future.
It's the first description of a complete engineered tissue that has been successfully used in this way. The study is a major milestone for the London Project to Cure Blindness, a partnership between Moorfields Eye Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, the UCL Institute of Ophthalmology, and the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR).