Japanese woman is first recipient of next-generation stem cells | Hacker News Reader

Japanese woman is first recipient of next-generation stem cells

nature.com

63 pointsmmastrac5 comments

One advantage of iPS (induced pluripotent stem cells) is the lack of rejection - these are derived from your own fibroblasts.

I initially wondered if these would grow connections to the optic nerve, and it seems that in the mouse model they do [1]. "Researchers observed that the cells seemed to develop normally, integrating into the existing retina and forming the nerve connections needed to transmit visual information to the brain."

I'm curious to know if these are expected to develop into normal retinae - including the macula densa and fovea centralis - or if they instead provide peripheral-equivalent vision throughout, even at the center of vision.

1 = http://www.fiercebiotech.com/story/first-successful-transpla...

> I'm curious to know if these are expected to develop into normal retinae

I don't think so. My life is working in US on stem cell regeneration of limbs. As far as I understand the development of macro structures requires an inter cell grid, than no one so far has managed to artificially create.

TLDR from reddit: "For the first time ever, a patient's own skin cells were reverted to induced pluripotent stem cells, differentiated into retinal cells, and transplanted back into the patient as an experimental therapy for macular degeneration."

An important note from the article:

"The procedure Kurimoto performed is unlikely to restore his patient's vision. However, researchers around the world will be watching closely to see whether the cells are able to check the further destruction of the retina while avoiding potential side-effects, such as bringing about an immune reaction or inducing cancerous growth."

Seems that at this point they're still evaluating safety rather than actual therapeutic benefits. Still exciting progress :)

Being able to "check the further destruction of the retina" is a therapeutic benefit when it comes to macular degeneration. It's the best outcome you can hope for on any of our current treatments for it. The retina is still relatively poorly understood, and our treatments for the pathologies of it are unfortunately limited.

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