Abstract
The lacrimal gland plays an important role in maintaining a homeostatic environment for healthy ocular surfaces via tear secretion. Dry eye disease, which is caused by lacrimal gland dysfunction, is one of the most prevalent eye disorders and causes ocular discomfort, significant visual disturbances, and a reduced quality of life. Current therapies for dry eye disease, including artificial tear eye drops, are transient and palliative. The lacrimal gland, which consists of acini, ducts, and myoepithelial cells, develops from its organ germ via reciprocal epithelial-mesenchymal interactions during embryogenesis. Lacrimal tissue stem cells have been identified for use in regenerative therapeutic approaches aimed at restoring lacrimal gland functions. Fully functional organ replacement, such as for tooth and hair follicles, has also been developed via a novel three-dimensional stem cell manipulation, designated the Organ Germ Method, as a next-generation regenerative medicine. Recently, we successfully developed fully functional bioengineered lacrimal gland replacements after transplanting a bioengineered organ germ using this method. This study represented a significant advance in potential lacrimal gland organ replacement as a novel regenerative therapy for dry eye disease. In this review, we will summarize recent progress in lacrimal regeneration research and the development of bioengineered lacrimal gland organ replacement therapy.
Highlights
Advances in regenerative medicine, influenced by our understanding of developmental biology, stem cell biology, and tissue engineering, are expected to underlie next-generation medical therapies [1,2,3].Regenerative medicine for various organs, such as stem cell transplants of enriched or purified tissue-derived stem cells and cytokine therapies that activate tissue stem cell differentiation, have been clinically developed and applied [4,5]
The concept of regenerative medicine in ophthalmology includes corneal limbal stem cell transplants, which are based on the understanding of stem cell biology, and regenerative cell sheets, such as cultivated corneal epithelial cell sheets and cultivated oral mucosal epithelial cell sheets, and this has contributed to effective ocular surface reconstruction in clinics for severe ocular surface disorders [11,12,13]
Dry-eye disease (DED) is caused by a tear shortage due to lacrimal gland dysfunction that results from systemic diseases and environmental exposures, such as Sjogren’s syndrome and ocular cicatricial pemphigoid, or other causes, including aging, long-term work with visual displays, the use of contact lenses, low-humidity environments, and refractive surgery [37,38,39,40,41,42,43,44,45,46,47,48,49]
Summary
Advances in regenerative medicine, influenced by our understanding of developmental biology, stem cell biology, and tissue engineering, are expected to underlie next-generation medical therapies [1,2,3]. Regenerative medicine for various organs, such as stem cell transplants of enriched or purified tissue-derived stem cells and cytokine therapies that activate tissue stem cell differentiation, have been clinically developed and applied [4,5] These therapies represent attractive concepts with the potential to partially restore lost organ functionality in damaged tissues, malignant diseases, myocardial infarction, neurological diseases, and hepatic dysfunction [6,7,8,9]. Organ replacement regenerative therapy for tissue repair, via reconstruction of a fully functional, bioengineered organ from stem cells using in vitro three-dimensional cell manipulation, is one of the ultimate goals for regenerative medicine: the replacement of dysfunctional organs arising from disease, injury, or aging [20]. We illustrate that there is potential for novel, fully functional lacrimal gland regeneration as a next-generation regenerative medicine [22,23]
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
