From UK Trade & Invetment
Scotland is to trial a new stem cell treatment which could help patients with corneal blindness.
An innovative new treatment which uses stem cells to combat certain types of blindness is to be tested in Scotland.
Researchers at the Princess Alexandra Eye Pavilion in Edinburgh and Glasgow’s Gartnavel General Hospital will start a two-year trial using around 20 patients with corneal disease.
The technique will take stem cells from dead adult donors, which are then transplanted onto the surface of the cornea in the hope it could help to restore sight.
By using material from deceased donors, the method has avoided the controversy which surrounds embryonic stem cell research.
Professor Bal Dhillon, Consultant Ophthalmic Surgeon at Princess Alexandra and the project’s leader, commented: “This study is the first of its kind anywhere in the world and it is exciting to be involved in such groundbreaking work.
Last year, international pharmaceutical giant Pfizer established a biotechnology hub in the UK to carry out research into stem cell treatments for degenerative diseases and damaged organs.