Successful Transplantation of Retinal Cells in Rats

UNIVERSITY OF UTAH MORAN EYE CENTER NEWS RELEASE

Embargoed for release at 2 p.m. MST Sunday Dec. 16

Contacts:--Raymond D. Lund, vision researcher -- (801) 581-8142--Chris Nelson, Moran Eye Center public relations -- office (801) 587-7693, pager (801) 339-3027 (Dr. Lund will be available for interviews from home the weekend of Dec. 15-16. Page Chris Nelson to contact him.)

SUCCESSFUL TRANSPLANTATION OF RETINAL CELLS IN RATSResearch Lays Groundwork for Vision Restoration in Humans

Dec. 16, 2001 -- A study by an international team of researchers to be posted online Monday, Dec. 17 at the Nature Neuroscience web site (www.nature.com/neuro) shows vision can be successfully preserved in rats that go blind in the first months of life. The study will be published in the journal in January 2002.

Researchers working at the University of Utah's Moran Eye Center -- in collaboration with the Institute of Ophthalmology in London and the University of Sheffield (United Kingdom) -- transplanted human retinal pigment epithelial cell line into rats born with a genetic predisposition to retinal degeneration and sight loss.

Following the surgery, researchers found that the transplanted cells survived in the rats and also preserved the rats' ability to see, according to Raymond D. Lund, Ph.D., professor of ophthalmology and visual sciences at the University of Utah's Moran Eye Center in Salt Lake City.

"This study is a major step forward toward the goal of preserving vision in patients suffering from retinal degeneration," said Lund. "Our research demonstrates that it is possible to preserve vision by transplanting a human cell line into the eyes of animals with similar retinal degeneration to humans. In essence, a rat that would have been blind was able to discriminate patterns as well as a rat with normal vision." He says the research also demonstrates that the analytical processes in a rat's brain that allow it to see remain intact following transplant.

The next step, says Lund, is figuring out how to translate the research into treatment for people with retinal diseases. "This next step is much more complex. However, the idea of using a human cell line in these rats is to prepare the way for limited human trials in the next three to four years," said Lund.

As many as 10 million Americans suffer from retinal diseases such as age-related macular degeneration and retinitis pigmentosa. Currently, there are no effective vision restoring treatments for either disease.

Collaborators on the study included Dr. Sergej Girman at the University of Utah's Moran Eye Center, Dr. Peter Coffey in the Psychology Department at the University of Sheffield, and Drs. John Greenwood and Peter Adamson at the Institute of Ophthalmology in London.

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About Raymond D. Lund, Ph.D.

Dr. Lund is considered one of the world's foremost experts in retinal cell physiology and vision restoration. His research focuses on retinal cell transplantation and vision restoration. He sits on the boards of several foundations, including the Scientific Advisory Board of the Foundation Fighting Blindness, and is the author or co-author of more than 400 papers, books, book chapters, and abstracts. A former professor and chair of the Department of Anatomy at England's Cambridge University, Lund has served in faculty and leadership positions at the University of Pittsburgh, Medical University of South Carolina, University of Washington, Stanford University and the University of Pennsylvania. Prior to joining the U faculty in November 2000, he served as the Duke-Elder Professor of Pathology at the Institute of Ophthalmology in London.

About Nature Neuroscience

Nature Neuroscience is an international monthly journal, which aims to provide a high-visibility forum for papers of exceptional scientific quality and interest to the neuroscience community. Although it comes from the same publisher as the journal Nature, the two journals are editorially independent. As with the other Nature titles, there is no external editorial board, and all editorial decisions are the responsibility of the full-time editorial staff.

The University of Utah's Moran Eye Center web site is at:www.moraneyecenter.org

Chris Nelson, [email protected]Public Relations OfficerUniversity of Utah Moran Eye Center(801) 587-7693(801) 339-3027 (pager)

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