Tracking the Transplanted Neurosphere in Retinal Pigment Epithelium Degeneration Model

Introduction: retinal pigment epithelium (rpe) layer deterioration is a leading cause of age-related macular degeneration (amd), i.e., the most significant reason for irreversible blindness.the present study aimed to track the neurosphere-derived (ns) from bone marrow stromal stemcells (bmscs) grafted into the sub-retinal space (destruction of the rpe layer by sodium iodate).methods: rpe degeneration model was performed using the injection of 5% sodiumiodate performed in the retro-orbital sinus of wistar rats. bmscs were extracted from theexamined rat femur and induced into ns, using egf, bfgf, and b27. brdu-ns labeledcells were transplanted into the sub-retinal space. for detecting bmscs and ns markers,immunocytochemistry was performed. moreover, immunohistochemical was conducted fortracking the transplanted cells in the rpe and sensory retina.results: the immunocytochemistry of bmscs cells displayed the expression of mesenchymalstem cells markers (cd90; 99%±1), cd166 (98%±2), cd44 (99%±1). additionally, theexpression of neural lineage markers in ns, such as sox2, oct4, nanog, nestin, andneurofilaments (68, 160, 200) revealed the differentiation from bmscs. tracking brdu-nslabeled suggested these aggregations in most layers of the retina.conclusion: our study data indicated that bmscs derived neurosphere had the potential tomigrate in injured retinal and integrate into the neurosensory retina. these data can be useful infinding safe cells for replacement therapy in amd.