The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved the first artificial retina, an implanted device that replicates some of the function of the retina, helping to restore vision to people blinded with a rare genetic disorder. The device is intended to replace the function of light-sensing cells in the retina destroyed by retinitis pigmentosa, an inherited degenerative disease that affects about …
retina
Why Face Recognition Can Be Difficult with Central Vision Loss
Diseases such as age-related macular degeneration, cone-rod dystrophy and Stargardt disease cause scotomas, or blind spots, which often have devastating effects on central vision. They cause gaps in a person’s visual field, making it difficult to see words in a book, images on a computer monitor or TV and the features of someone’s face. A recent research paper from Lighthouse International and …
Rosemary Compound Shown To Help Fight Macular Degeneration In Mouse Model
A new study led by the Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute reports that carnosic acid, found in the herb rosemary, actually promotes eye health. Led by Dr. Stuart A. Lipton, the team found that carnosic acid protects the retina from degeneration and toxicity in cell culture and in rodent models of light-induced retinal damage. This suggests that carnosic acid may have clinical …
Scientists See New Hope for Restoring Vision With Stem Cell Help
Human-derived stem cells can spontaneously form the tissue that develops into the part of the eye that allows us to see, according to a study published by Cell Press in the 5th anniversary issue of the journal Cell Stem Cell. Transplantation of this 3D tissue in the future could help patients with visual impairments see clearly. During development, light-sensitive tissue lining the back of the …
Transplanted Rod Precursor Cells Restore Vision in Experimental Mice
Studies in mouse models of night blindness have demonstrated that vision can be restored by transplanting rod precursor cells taken from mouse neonates directly into the retina of recipient animals. The University College London (UCL) Institute of Ophthalmology-led team showed that the transplanted rod cells made synaptic connections with the existing retinal circuitry, were light responsive, and …
Aging of Eyes Is Blamed for Range of Health Woes
For decades, scientists have looked for explanations as to why certain conditions occur with age, among them memory loss, slower reaction time, insomnia and even depression. They have scrupulously investigated such suspects as high cholesterol, obesity, heart disease and an inactive lifestyle. Now a fascinating body of research supports a largely unrecognized culprit: the aging of the …
Flexible Adult Stem Cells, Right There in Your Eye
Researchers reporting in the January issue of Cell Stem Cell, a Cell Press publication, have identified adult stem cells of the central nervous system in a single layer of cells at the back of the eye. That cell layer, known as the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE), underlies and supports photoreceptors in the light-sensitive retina. Without it, photoreceptors and vision are lost. "You can get …
Eye Spy: Stem Cells Discovered in Eyeball
Hiding in the back of your eye are stem cells from the central nervous system, scientists have discovered. The stem cells in question were found in a special layer of cells in the eye called the retinal pigment epithelium, or RPE. Just one cell thick, the layer lies underneath the retina, the eye's light sensor. The RPE keeps the retina alive and functioning. In diseases like macular degeneration, …
A bionic prosthetic eye that speaks the language of your brain
Sheila Nirenberg of Cornell University has been trying to work out how the retina in your eye communicates with your brain — and judging by a recent talk at TEDMED, it seems like she’s actually cracked it. Nirenberg produced mathematical equations that, with startling accuracy, encode images into neuron pulses that can be understood by an animal …
Retinitis Pigmentosa Treatment: Retina Implants To Restore Sight Undergo Human Trials
Promising treatments for those blinded by an often-hereditary, retina-damaging disease are expanding throughout Europe and making their way across the pond, offering a ray of hope for the hundreds of thousands of people in the U.S. left in the dark by retinitis pigmentosa. The disease—which affects about one in 4,000 people in the U.S. and about 1.5 million people worldwide—kills the retina's …