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Corneal epithelial cells survive extended post-mortem period, study finds
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Corneal epithelial cells with the potential for regeneration can survive up to 7 days post-mortem without being cultured, according to a study by researchers in Norway.
"The study demonstrates the hardiness and enormous regenerative potential of peripheral corneal cells. Donor corneas processed in an eye bank organ culture storage system will obtain an intact epithelial layer within a few days," the study authors said.
Jon Klokk Slettedal, MD, and colleagues used light and scanning electron microscopy to evaluate the regenerative ability of 24 paired donor corneas obtained 28 to 163 hours after host death. Investigators immediately fixed one cornea of each pair to serve as a control, while the second cornea was cultured for 3 days in an eye bank medium at 32° Celsius, according to the study.
"The control corneas showed decreasing amounts of epithelial cells with increasing post-mortem time," the authors said.
However, all cultured corneas showed rapid epithelial regeneration, with 10 of the 12 cultured corneas being covered with epithelium after 3 days, they noted.
The study is published in the June issue of Acta Ophthalmologica Scandinavica.