Researchers make blind people see again with artificial cornea

An estimated 12.7 million people worldwide are blind because of an injury or pathological change in the cornea. A large proportion of these people suffer from the eye disease keratoconus, in which the cornea progressively thins and becomes tapered. This corneal curvature can severely impair vision, even leading to blindness. A new biotechnological solution is well on its way to solving this problem.

Implants from pig skin provide eyesight

In a pilot study, researchers and entrepreneurs have developed a cornea implant made of collagen from pig skin that resembles the human cornea. 

The method was successfully tested on 20 patients in Iran and India. 14 of the patients were blind before they received the implant, yet two years after surgery, they had regained all or part of their vision. Three had perfect vision after surgery. 

The physicians were able to stabilize a pathologically altered cornea and restore vision in some patients. In addition, the team developed a surgical method that does not require sutures. The operation can be performed by laser or by hand. No existing tissue is removed; only the artificial cornea is placed in the natural one. As a result, patients experienced good wound healing without complications. 

An additional added value: Until now, donor corneas could usually only be stored for up to four weeks, by which time they must have been transplanted. In many parts of the world, these storage requirements make the process challenging. However, the artificial cornea can likely be stored for at least two years. 

But that's not all: While in a normal transplantation, several years of medication are required to prevent the rejection of donor corneas, with the novel implants, an eight-week follow-up treatment with eye drops was sufficient. 

The results of the study, conducted jointly by researchers at Linköping University (LiU) and LinkoCare Life Sciences AB, were published in the journal Nature Biotechnology. 

The problem with corneal implants 

Corneal implants are a rare commodity because organ donors are few and far between. 

Across Germany, the cornea is the most common transplanted tissue, with about 4,800 annual transplants taking place. For every 70 donations needed, there is usually only one available cornea. With about 1 million new cases each year, low- and middle-income regions in Asia, Africa, and the Middle East are most affected.

An artificial cornea therefore offers a welcome solution. And since pig skin is a waste product of the meat processing industry, the starting material is available in large quantities.

Corneal blindness: A soon-to-be-solved problem?

For developing countries such as Iran and India, where a particularly large number of people are affected by visual impairment and blindness resulting from diseases of the cornea, the research from Sweden offers a special opportunity for a better quality of life. 

Although more detailed research is required, the team seems to be on a promising route toward the future of internationally accessible eye care.