title: Transplantation of cultured rhesus monkey vascular endothelial cells to allogeneic cornea concomitant with stripping of Descemet's membrane.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  In cases of damaged corneal endothelium cells (CECs) of the eye, transplantation of cultured vascular endothelial cells (VECs) may be a viable method to restore transparency.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To evaluate the viability of replacing damaged primate CECs with cultured allogeneic VECs.
  
  
  METHODS
  Rhesus monkey VECs (RMVECs) were cultured and proliferating cells were labeled with bromodeoxyuridine (BrdU) in vitro. RMs of the experimental group (n = 6) underwent manual Descemettt membrane stripping with transplantation of RMVECs labeled with BrdU; those in the control group received manual Descemetnt membrane stripping without transplantation. Postoperative evaluations included the transparency and appearance of the corneal graft; distribution and ultrastructural changes of RMVECs on the inner surface of the cornea using scanning and transmission electron microscopy, and immunohistological identification of BrdU.
  
  
  RESULTS
  At 90 days postsurgery, the corneal grafts of the monkeys in the experimental group retained better transparency than those of the controls, without corneal neovascularization or bullous keratopathy. A layer of cells with positive BrdU staining was found on the posterior surface of the treated corneas in the experimental group, while there was no VEC structure in corneal grafts from the monkeys of the control group.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  RMVECs can grow on the posterior surface of the cornea without Descemet's membrane. Cultured and transplanted RMVECs appeared similar in ultrastructure. VECs can provide a barrier to maintain corneal dehydration and transparency to some extent.
authors.forename: Qin
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Zhu
authors.forename: Min
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.forename: Xiaomei
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Sun
authors.forename: Wenjia
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology, Fourth Affi liated Hospital of Kunming Medical University (Second People's Hospital of Yunnan Province), Kunming, China.
authors.forename: Zhulin
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Hu
authors.forename: Hai
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Liu
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D015715:Corneal Edema / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000601:surgery*; D016039:Corneal Transplantation / Q000379:methods*; D003886:Descemet Membrane / Q000166:cytology / Q000601:surgery*; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D042783:Endothelial Cells / Q000166:cytology / Q000637:transplantation*; D004728:Endothelium, Corneal / Q000637:transplantation*; D008253:Macaca mulatta; D014184:Transplantation, Homologous