title: Three-Dimensional Culture of Functional Adult Rabbit Lacrimal Gland Epithelial Cells on Decellularized Scaffold.
abstract: Aqueous tear-deficient dry eye disease is a multifactorial chronic disorder, in which the lacrimal gland fails to produce enough tears to maintain a healthy ocular surface. Some severe cases may develop corneal damage and significant vision loss. Treatment primarily involves palliation using ocular surface lubricants, but can only provide temporary relief. Construction of a bioengineered lacrimal gland having functional secretory epithelial cells is a potentially promising option for providing long-term relief to severe dry eye patients. Using sphere-forming culture techniques, we cultured adult rabbit lacrimal gland progenitor cells and prepared a lacrimal gland scaffold by decellularization. When progenitor cells were seeded onto the decellularized scaffold, they formed duct- and acinar-like structures in the three-dimensional culture system. Lacrimal gland epithelial cells showed good cell viability, cell differentiation, and secretory function in decellularized lacrimal gland matrix, as indicated by morphology, immunostaining, and β-hexosaminidase secretion assay. This study demonstrated the potential suitability of utilizing tissue-specific progenitor cells and a tissue-derived bioscaffold for lacrimal gland restoration.
authors.affiliation: 1 Department of Ophthalmology, Wilmer Eye Institute, School of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University , Baltimore, Maryland.
authors.forename: Hui
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Lin
authors.affiliation: 1 Department of Ophthalmology, Wilmer Eye Institute, School of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University , Baltimore, Maryland.
authors.forename: Guoying
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Sun
authors.affiliation: 1 Department of Ophthalmology, Wilmer Eye Institute, School of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University , Baltimore, Maryland.
authors.forename: Hong
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: He
authors.affiliation: 2 Tufts University School of Medicine , Boston, Massachusetts.
authors.forename: Benjamin
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Botsford
authors.affiliation: 3 University of British Columbia , Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada .
authors.forename: Mackenzie
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: 1 Department of Ophthalmology, Wilmer Eye Institute, School of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University , Baltimore, Maryland.|4 Translational Tissue Engineering Center, Johns Hopkins University , Baltimore, Maryland.
authors.forename: Jennifer H
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: Elisseeff
authors.affiliation: 1 Department of Ophthalmology, Wilmer Eye Institute, School of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University , Baltimore, Maryland.
authors.forename: Samuel C
authors.initials: SC
authors.lastname: Yiu
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D015352:Dry Eye Syndromes / Q000378:metabolism / Q000628:therapy; D004847:Epithelial Cells / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism*; D005260:Female; D007765:Lacrimal Apparatus / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism*; D011817:Rabbits; D013234:Stem Cells / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism*; D023822:Tissue Engineering; D054457:Tissue Scaffolds / Q000737:chemistry*