Description
Age related macular degeneration (AMD) is the leading cause of blindness in developed countries. One major difficulty in studying AMD is modeling the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) in vitro. The RPE grows on the acellular Bruch’s membrane, which sits directly superior to the choroid layer. RPE cells have characteristic dark pigment and grow in tight polygonal cell junctions. When grown in tissue culture flasks, these characteristics are not exhibited. In this study, spider silk coated substrates were used to replicate the surface chemistry of Bruch’s membrane and promote RPE growth, morphology, and differentiation
Optimizing the Growth and Characterization of Retinal Pigment Epithelial Cells
Age related macular degeneration (AMD) is the leading cause of blindness in developed countries. One major difficulty in studying AMD is modeling the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) in vitro. The RPE grows on the acellular Bruch’s membrane, which sits directly superior to the choroid layer. RPE cells have characteristic dark pigment and grow in tight polygonal cell junctions. When grown in tissue culture flasks, these characteristics are not exhibited. In this study, spider silk coated substrates were used to replicate the surface chemistry of Bruch’s membrane and promote RPE growth, morphology, and differentiation