Abstract

The ultimate goal of this study is to develop clinical approaches to implant functional retinal tissue into the blind eye as a means of restoring vision. This will necessitate overcoming both immunobiological and neurobiological barriers. The proposed study will focus on immunologic barriers and as such is designed to extend understanding of the mechanisms of retinal graft rejection and to focus on the key elements involved in rejection. These studies should provide information for developing appropriate immunological strategies for promoting survival of retinal grafts. Three specific areas will be examined: (1) identification of immune effector cells (DH, NK, or CTL) crucial in rejection, (2) identification of lymphokines (IFN-gamma) in the intraocular microenvironment that may play a role in retinal graft rejection, and (3) identification of immunological properties of the intraocular microenvironment altered by pathological processes.

  Funding Agency

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Eye Institute (NEI)
Type
Research Project (R01)
Project #
5R01EY009595-07
Application #
2444348
Study Section
Visual Sciences C Study Section (VISC)
Project Start
1992-05-01
Project End
1998-06-30
Budget Start
1997-07-01
Budget End
1998-06-30
Support Year
7
Fiscal Year
1997
Total Cost
Indirect Cost

  Institution

Name
Schepens Eye Research Institute
Department
Type
DUNS #
City
Boston
State
MA
Country
United States
Zip Code
02114

  Publications

Klassen, Henry; Warfvinge, Karin; Schwartz, Philip H et al. (2008) Isolation of progenitor cells from GFP-transgenic pigs and transplantation to the retina of allorecipients. Cloning Stem Cells 10:391-402
Klassen, Henry; Schwartz, Philip H; Ziaeian, Boback et al. (2007) Neural precursors isolated from the developing cat brain show retinal integration following transplantation to the retina of the dystrophic cat. Vet Ophthalmol 10:245-53
Klassen, Henry; Kiilgaard, Jens Folke; Zahir, Tasneem et al. (2007) Progenitor cells from the porcine neural retina express photoreceptor markers after transplantation to the subretinal space of allorecipients. Stem Cells 25:1222-30
Zamiri, Parisa; Masli, Sharmila; Kitaichi, Nobuyoshi et al. (2005) Thrombospondin plays a vital role in the immune privilege of the eye. Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci 46:908-19
Zahir, Tasneem; Klassen, Henry; Young, Michael J (2005) Effects of ciliary neurotrophic factor on differentiation of late retinal progenitor cells. Stem Cells 23:424-32
Schwartz, Philip H; Nethercott, Hubert; Kirov, Ivan I et al. (2005) Expression of neurodevelopmental markers by cultured porcine neural precursor cells. Stem Cells 23:1286-94
Klassen, Henry; Ziaeian, Boback; Kirov, Ivan I et al. (2004) Isolation of retinal progenitor cells from post-mortem human tissue and comparison with autologous brain progenitors. J Neurosci Res 77:334-43
Klassen, Henry J; Ng, Tat Fong; Kurimoto, Yasuo et al. (2004) Multipotent retinal progenitors express developmental markers, differentiate into retinal neurons, and preserve light-mediated behavior. Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci 45:4167-73
Zamiri, Parisa; Zhang, Qiang; Streilein, J Wayne (2004) Vulnerability of allogeneic retinal pigment epithelium to immune T-cell-mediated damage in vivo and in vitro. Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci 45:177-84
Ishida, Kazuhiro; Panjwani, Noorjahan; Cao, Zhiyi et al. (2003) Participation of pigment epithelium in ocular immune privilege. 3. Epithelia cultured from iris, ciliary body, and retina suppress T-cell activation by partially non-overlapping mechanisms. Ocul Immunol Inflamm 11:91-105

Showing the most recent 10 out of 31 publications