AIM To describe a surgical technique for autologous limbal stem cell transplantation and the outcome of a series of patients with unilateral stem cell deficiency. METHODS A report of six consecutive patients who underwent autologous limbal stem cell transplantation is presented. The primary diagnosis included alkali burn (n=3), conjunctival intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN) (n=1), recurrent pte...

AIM To study the efficacy and safety of amniotic membrane graft as an adjunctive therapy after removal of primary pterygium, and to compare the clinical outcome with conjunctival autograft and topical mitomycin C. METHODS 80 eyes of 71 patients with primary pterygia were treated with excision followed by amniotic membrane graft. The result was compared retrospectively with 56 eyes of 50 patie...

PURPOSE This study investigated rabbit conjunctival and corneal epithelial cells to determine if they belong to two separate lineages. METHODS Rabbit corneal, limbal, and conjunctival epithelial cells were isolated and grown in Dulbecco's minimum essential media and 20% fetal bovine serum in the presence of mitomycin-treated 3T3 feeder cells. After reaching 80% confluence, 3T3 feeder cells an...

The effects of sclerocorneal limbal stem cell autograft transplantation in dogs with corneal wounds were studied. Eighteen dogs were divided in two groups (GI and GII). The animals of GI (n=12) underwent limbal transplantation 30 days after the destruction of limbal stem cells. The dogs of GII (n=6) only underwent destruction of stem cells (control group). Light microscopy examination of the ri...

Background: Pterygium is a common disorder in many parts of the world, with reported prevalence rates ranging from 0.3 to 29%. Epidemiological studies have proposed an association with chronic exposure to sunlight and an increased geographical prevalence within a peri-equatorial ‘pterygium belt’ region (1). Pterygium excision is often combined with various adjunctive measures to prevent its rec...

PURPOSE Limbal fibroblasts are known to regulate the maintenance and differentiation of the corneal epithelium including the limbal epithelial stem cells. This study examined the effect of limbal fibroblast conditioned media in a mouse model of limbal stem cell deficiency. METHODS Limbal stem cell deficiency was created in C57/Bl6 mice by performing a limbus to limbus epithelial debridement. ...

PURPOSE To evaluate the expression patterns of cytokeratin (K) 12, 13, and 19 in normal epithelium of the human ocular surface to determine whether K13 could be used as a marker for conjunctival epithelium. METHODS Total RNA was isolated from the human conjunctiva and central cornea. Those transcripts that had threefolds or higher expression levels in the conjunctiva than the cornea were iden...

CASE REPORT A 74-year-old man developed a partial limbal stem cell deficiency secondary to a chemical injury in the left eye. He was treated with a sectorial conjunctival epitheliectomy and amniotic membrane transplantation. After 3 weeks there was an intact, smooth and stable corneal epithelium. DISCUSSION This case report emphasizes that conjunctival epitheliectomy and amniotic membrane tra...

Context. Tenon's cyst or conjunctival cyst formation is not uncommon late complication of traditional extracapsular cataract surgery; however, few reports are available in the literature. Aims. Large cystic swellings were clinically diagnosed as filtering blebs at the cataract incision site in two patients. The purpose of the case presentation is to discuss the factors leading to cyst formation...