NEI Research News

Researchers have developed lab-grown pig retinal organoids to test stem cell replacement therapies for diseases that damage the eye's light-sensing photoreceptors.

A clinical trial that tested an experimental stem cell treatment for blinding cornea injuries found the treatment was feasible and safe in 14 patients, and there was a high proportion of complete or partial success.

A team led by researchers at Mount Sinai has identified in mice a potential therapeutic target for dry eye disease.

Florida Atlantic University researchers Lisa A. Brennan and Marc Kantorow will determine the novel mechanisms that convert immature eye lens precursor cells into functional transparent cells.

Researchers from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) have discovered the source of dysfunction in the process whereby cells in the eye's retina remove waste.

NEI researchers improved a crucial step in the production of retinal pigment epithelium (RPE), a tissue they grow in the lab from patient blood cells and are testing in a clinical trial as treatment for AMD.

Ruchi Sharma, Ph.D., a staff scientist in the NEI Ocular and Stem Cell Translational Section, received an award from the Knights Templar Eye Foundation (KTEF), a charity sponsored by the Grand Encampment of Knights Templar.

Cultivated autologous limbal epithelial cells (CALEC) procedure shown to be safe and feasible with early positive results of restored cornea surfaces or vision gains in four patients with severe chemical burns.

The National Eye Institute has published "Stem cell sources and characterization in the development of cell-based products for treating retinal disease: An NEI town hall report."

Texas Congressman Pete Sessions visited the NIH March 27 to meet with NEI Director Michael F. Chiang, M.D., and to tour NEI’s Section on Ocular and Stem Cell Translational Research, led by Kapil Bharti, Ph.D.