Human SMILE-Derived Stromal Lenticule Scaffold for Regenerative Therapy: Review and Perspectives

A transparent cornea is paramount for vision. Corneal opacity is one of the leading causes of blindness. Although conventional corneal transplantation has been successful in recovering patients’ vision, the outcomes are challenged by a global lack of donor tissue availability. Bioengineered corneal...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inInternational journal of molecular sciences Vol. 23; no. 14; p. 7967
Main Authors Santra, Mithun, Liu, Yu-Chi, Jhanji, Vishal, Yam, Gary Hin-Fai
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Basel MDPI AG 19.07.2022
MDPI
Subjects
Astigmatism
Biocompatibility
Bioengineering
Cell adhesion & migration
Cell cycle
Collagen
Cornea
corneal regeneration
Corneal transplantation
Drug delivery systems
Edema
Endothelium
Extracellular matrix
extracellular matrix scaffold
Eye surgery
Growth factors
Homeostasis
Mechanical properties
Phenotypes
Regenerative medicine
Review
Scaffolds
Scars
Stem cells
stromal lenticules
Tissue engineering
Transplantation
Wound healing
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Summary:A transparent cornea is paramount for vision. Corneal opacity is one of the leading causes of blindness. Although conventional corneal transplantation has been successful in recovering patients’ vision, the outcomes are challenged by a global lack of donor tissue availability. Bioengineered corneal tissues are gaining momentum as a new source for corneal wound healing and scar management. Extracellular matrix (ECM)-scaffold-based engineering offers a new perspective on corneal regenerative medicine. Ultrathin stromal laminar tissues obtained from lenticule-based refractive correction procedures, such as SMall Incision Lenticule Extraction (SMILE), are an accessible and novel source of collagen-rich ECM scaffolds with high mechanical strength, biocompatibility, and transparency. After customization (including decellularization), these lenticules can serve as an acellular scaffold niche to repopulate cells, including stromal keratocytes and stem cells, with functional phenotypes. The intrastromal transplantation of these cell/tissue composites can regenerate native-like corneal stromal tissue and restore corneal transparency. This review highlights the current status of ECM-scaffold-based engineering with cells, along with the development of drug and growth factor delivery systems, and elucidates the potential uses of stromal lenticule scaffolds in regenerative therapeutics.
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ISSN:1422-0067
1661-6596
1422-0067
DOI:10.3390/ijms23147967