title: Experimental intraocular proliferation and neovascularization.
abstract: An experimental model of massive periretinal proliferation and intraocular neovascularization, produced in rabbits by the intravitreal injection of 250,00 cultured heterologous fibroblasts, showed no significant difference in the detachment rate (69% to 100%) or neovascularization rate (45% to 88%) between the animals injected with autologous cells and those injected with heterologous cells. Dermal fibroblasts produced a slightly higher detachment rate than conjunctival fibroblasts and were equally effective after reconstitution and subculture from liquid nitrogen storage in 7% dimethyl sulfoxide. Heterologous cells produced no clinical or histologic evidence of rejection when compared with autologous cells in the same animal and had the following advantages: (1) elimination of several biopsies and extended cell culture time; (2) a ready source of cryopreserved cells is available; (3) multiple injections of many animals can be performed within a short time; (4) in vivo and in vitro drug testing can be correlated on the same cell line.
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D003228:Conjunctiva / Q000166:cytology; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D005347:Fibroblasts / Q000637:transplantation; D009389:Neovascularization, Pathologic; D009898:Optic Disk / Q000473:pathology; D011817:Rabbits; D012160:Retina / Q000473:pathology*; D012163:Retinal Detachment / Q000209:etiology / Q000473:pathology*; D012171:Retinal Vessels / Q000473:pathology; D012867:Skin / Q000166:cytology; D014822:Vitreous Body