title: Tissue engineering of feline corneal endothelium using a devitalized human cornea as carrier.
abstract: The difficulties in obtaining good quality tissue for the replacement of corneas of patients suffering from endothelial dysfunctions have prompted us to evaluate the feasibility of producing a tissue-engineered (TE) corneal endothelium using devitalized human stromal carriers. Thus, corneal substitutes were produced by seeding cultured feline corneal endothelial cells on top of previously frozen human corneal stromas. After two weeks of culture to allow attachment and spreading of the seeded cells, the TE corneal endothelium was stained with alizarin red for endothelial cell count and fixed for histology, immunofluorescence labeling, scanning and transmission electron microscopy. Histology and Hoechst staining showed that there were no remaining cells in the devitalized stroma. After seeding, histology and transmission electron microscopy showed that the TE corneal endothelium formed a monolayer of tightly packed cells that were well adhered to Descemet's membrane. Scanning electron microscopy corroborated that the cells covered the entire posterior corneal surface and had an endothelial morphology. Alizarin staining showed that mean cell counts were 2272 +/- 344 cells/mm(2), indicating that the cell density was appropriate for grafting. The TE feline corneal endothelium also expressed the function-related proteins Na(+)/HCO(3)(-), ZO-1, and Na(+)/K(+)-ATPase alpha1, and could easily be marked with a fluorescent tracker. This study demonstrates the feasibility of reconstructing a highly cellular and healthy corneal endothelium on devitalized human corneal stromas.
authors.affiliation: Hôpital du St-Sacrement du Centre Hospitalier Affilié Universitaire de Québec (CHAUQ), Department of Oto-Rhino-Laryngology and Ophthalmology, Laval University, Quebec, QC, Canada.
authors.forename: Stéphanie
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Proulx
authors.forename: Caroline
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Audet
authors.forename: Jeanne d'Arc
authors.initials: Jd
authors.lastname: Uwamaliya
authors.forename: Alexandre
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Deschambeault
authors.forename: Patrick
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Carrier
authors.forename: Claude J
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: Giasson
authors.forename: Isabelle
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Brunette
authors.forename: Lucie
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Germain
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000818:Animals; D002415:Cats; D002452:Cell Count; D002467:Cell Nucleus / Q000648:ultrastructure; D048430:Cell Shape; D004728:Endothelium, Corneal / Q000166:cytology / Q000201:enzymology / Q000502:physiology* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D005453:Fluorescence; D006801:Humans; D008565:Membrane Proteins / Q000378:metabolism; D008875:Middle Aged; D010750:Phosphoproteins / Q000378:metabolism; D027982:Sodium-Bicarbonate Symporters / Q000378:metabolism; D000254:Sodium-Potassium-Exchanging ATPase / Q000378:metabolism; D023822:Tissue Engineering / Q000379:methods*; D062826:Zonula Occludens-1 Protein
chemical_list: D008565:Membrane Proteins; D010750:Phosphoproteins; D027982:Sodium-Bicarbonate Symporters; C569042:TJP1 protein, human; D062826:Zonula Occludens-1 Protein; D000254:Sodium-Potassium-Exchanging ATPase