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Corneal Regeneration pp 277–290Cite as

Cultivated Limbal Stem Cell Transplantation: Indications and Technique

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Part of the book series: Essentials in Ophthalmology ((ESSENTIALS))

Abstract

Advances in stem cell research have made revolutionary changes to healthcare and medicine, holding promise for the restoration and regeneration of dysfunctional cells for a wide range of diseases and injuries. Ophthalmology stands at the forefront of this new technology with cultivated limbal epithelial transplantation (CLET) as a prime example of these cell-based therapies. CLET aims to restore the ocular surface in stem cell-deficient eyes by transplanting ex vivo expanded stem cell grafts. Cells are harvested from a healthy limbus, grown and multiplied in a laboratory for several days and then transplanted onto the stem cell-deficient eye. Since the introduction of this technique in 1997, numerous cultivation methods and surgical approaches have been used in various centres worldwide. In the majority of cases, the technique has been shown to successfully regenerate the corneal epithelium.

While the cell products produced by the laboratory continue to improve, it is also important to consider the recipient ocular surface as the recipient bed plays a crucial role in the survival of composite graft and the success of the surgery.

In this chapter, we explore indications for CLET, define preoperative evaluation and preparation methods and describe the cultivation and surgical approach based on our >10-year experience with this technique.

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Acknowledgement

We would like to acknowledge the important input of Nadia Zakaria who initiated the culturing method as used in the clinical trial and realised the GMP accreditation of the ophthalmology branch of the CCRG unit. She is employee at Novartis Institute of Biomedical Research since 2017.

Compliance with Ethical Requirements

Joséphine Behaegel, Sorcha Ní Dhubhghaill and Marie-José Tassignon declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Informed Consent

All procedures followed were in accordance with the ethical standards of the responsible committee on human experimentation (University Hospital of Antwerp) and with the Helsinki Declaration of 1975, as revised in 2000. Informed consent was obtained from all patients for being included in the study.

No animal studies were carried out by the authors for this article.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Department of Ophthalmology, Visual Optics and Visual Rehabilitation, University of Antwerp, Campus Drie Eiken, Antwerp, Belgium

    Joséphine Behaegel, Sorcha Ní Dhubhghaill & Marie-José Tassignon

  2. Department of Ophthalmology, Antwerp University Hospital, Edegem, Belgium

    Joséphine Behaegel, Sorcha Ní Dhubhghaill & Marie-José Tassignon

  3. Center for Cell Therapy and Regenerative Medicine, Antwerp University Hospital, CCRG-Oogheelkunde, Edegem, Belgium

    Joséphine Behaegel & Sorcha Ní Dhubhghaill

  4. Department of Ophthalmology, Brussels University Hospital, Jette, Belgium

    Joséphine Behaegel

Authors
  1. Joséphine Behaegel
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  2. Sorcha Ní Dhubhghaill
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  3. Marie-José Tassignon
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Marie-José Tassignon .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Miguel Hernández University , Alicante, Spain

    Jorge L. Alió

  2. Vissum-Instituto Oftalmologico de Alica, University Miguel Hernandez, Alicante, Alicante, Spain

    Jorge L. Alió del Barrio

  3. Vissum Corporation, Madrid, Spain

    Francisco Arnalich-Montiel

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Behaegel, J., Dhubhghaill, S.N., Tassignon, MJ. (2019). Cultivated Limbal Stem Cell Transplantation: Indications and Technique. In: Alió, J., Alió del Barrio, J., Arnalich-Montiel, F. (eds) Corneal Regeneration . Essentials in Ophthalmology. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-01304-2_19

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-01304-2_19

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