![Generating “Mini-Retinas” from Human Stem Cells]()
Recent technical advances in stem cell research have allowed researchers to generate complex structures called organoids that resemble whole organs. In the visual sciences, retinal organoids, or “mini-retinas,” are used to model human retinal development and disease. Wei Liu, Ph.D., and colleagues have discovered a convenient method for isolating large quantities of retinal organoids from human embryonic stem cell cultures. In long-term culture, the organoids generate retinal tissues consisting of the major retinal components including photoreceptors containing the ultrastructure of outer segments, the part of the photoreceptor that senses light. The method requires minimal manual manipulation and has been validated in two lines of human pluripotent stem cells. The findings offer new insight into optic cup invagination (an early step in the formation of the retina) in vivo. The study was published online on April 28, 2016, in Stem Cell Reports. Dr. Liu is assistant professor of ophthalmology & visual sciences and of genetics.
Posted on: Wednesday, May 18, 2016