title: Subretinal implantation of electrospun, short nanowire, and smooth poly(ε-caprolactone) scaffolds to the subretinal space of porcine eyes.
abstract: Biodegradable scaffolds play an important adjunct role in transplantation of retinal progenitor cells (RPCs) to the subretinal space. Poly(ε-Caprolactone) (PCL) scaffolds with different modifications were subretinally implanted in 28 porcine eyes and evaluated by multifocal electroretinography (mfERG) and histology after 6 weeks of observation. PCL Short Nanowire, PCL Electrospun, and PCL Smooth scaffolds were well tolerated in the subretinal space in pigs and caused no inflammation and limited tissue disruption. PCL Short Nanowire had an average rate of preserved overlying outer retina 17% higher than PCL Electrospun and 25% higher than PCL Smooth. Furthermore, PCL Short Nanowire was found to have the most suitable degree of stiffness for surgical delivery to the subretinal space. The membrane-induced photoreceptor damage could be shown on mfERG, but the reductions in P1 amplitude were only significant for the PCL Smooth. We conclude that of the tested scaffolds, PCL Short Nanowire is the best candidate for subretinal implantation.
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology, Glostrup Hospital, Copenhagen University Hospital, 2600 Glostrup, Denmark.
authors.forename: A T
authors.initials: AT
authors.lastname: Christiansen
authors.forename: S L
authors.initials: SL
authors.lastname: Tao
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Smith
authors.forename: G E
authors.initials: GE
authors.lastname: Wnek
authors.forename: J U
authors.initials: JU
authors.lastname: Prause
authors.forename: M J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Young
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Klassen
authors.forename: H J
authors.initials: HJ
authors.lastname: Kaplan
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: la Cour
authors.forename: J F
authors.initials: JF
authors.lastname: Kiilgaard