People With Damaged Corneas Will No Longer Have to Wait for Donors
Thanks to science, people with damaged corneas will no longer have to wait for donors, as it has now become possible to create artificial corneas using biomimetic materials.
Prof. Curtis W Frank, a chemical engineer has unveiled at the annual meeting of the American Chemical Society, the biomimetic material that can be used for constructing artificial corneas.
This artificial cornea is made up of DuoptixTM, the hydrogel, a polymer that holds a lot of water, consists of a disc that has a clear centre and tiny pores populating the periphery. The pores are engineered into the artificial cornea for cells to infiltrate the artificial lens and integrate it with surrounding natural tissue.
The material is made up of two interwoven networks of hydrogels. One network is made of polyethylene glycol molecules, which resists the accumulation of surface proteins and inflammation, while the other is made of molecules of polyacrylic acid, a relative of the superabsorbent material in diapers. The material can swell to a water content of 80 percent, about the same as biological tissues.
Scientists have tried to develop artificial corneas for half a century, but prototypes were not well tolerated. Infections developed around implants. Eyes extruded implants.
Only a few years ago, in a pilot study for a Bio-X grant to show proof of concept, researchers began to test the hydrogel in assays to make sure it was not toxic to cells. Soon other experts joined the effort.
Collaborators on the hydrogel work are researchers from Stanford; Institute for Polymer Science Dresden, Germany and Max Planck Institute, Mainz, Germany.
Researchers are now testing the material for biocompatibility in animal models. Animals have tolerated artificial corneas with no problems in trials as long as eight weeks.
“The material remains perfectly clear. Longer trials are a next step,” said Prof. Christopher Ta, a researcher.
Prof. Frank believes the material will promise a new view to at least 10 million people worldwide who are blind due to damaged or diseased corneas or many millions more who are nearsighted or farsighted due to misshapen corneas.
Filed under Eye Treatment
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