Gene transfer for corneal transplantation and limbal stem cell transplantation [ 2001 - 2005 ]

Research Grant

Researchers: E/Pr Keryn Williams (Principal investigator) ,  E/Pr Douglas Coster

Brief description The cornea is the clear window at the front of the eye. Corneal disease is the second most common reason for blindness in the world. It is sometimes made worse by additional disease affecting the ocular surface. Replacement of a damaged cornea, or of the elements that maintain a normal ocular surface, is possible by transplantation of tissue (either the cornea or the limbus) from a donor eye. The alternative, an artificial cornea, has never yet been reported to function nearly as well as does a successful corneal graft, because the interface between the patient and the prosthesis breaks down and serious problems such as infection are common. Transplantation of the cornea is very successful in some patients but in a sizable subgroup, the graft will fail because of an unwanted immune response. Rejection is the usual cause of a graft failure. Grafts to repair a damaged ocular surface also fail from rejection. Overcoming an unwanted immune response would improve the outcome of corneal transplantation by as much as thirty percent. Overcoming the twin problems of corneal graft rejection and ocular surface disease would make transplantation a feasible option for millions of blind individuals. Novel approaches to abrogation of the immune response to ocular tissue grafts are required, because the many developments in immunosuppression that have improved the survival of other types of transplants have not improved the outcome for grafts in the eye. The immunobiology of the eye is sufficiently different from that of solid organs to demand a different approach. We plan to investigate the use of localised gene transfer to donor eye tissue prior to transplantation, to improve corneal graft and limbal graft outcome.

Funding Amount $AUD 743,463.52

Funding Scheme NHMRC Project Grants

Notes Standard Project with Research Fellowship