Upcycling corneal tissue: Whole corneas cryopreserved by different media for research applications

Research output: Contribution to book/conference proceedings/anthology/reportConference contributionContributedpeer-review

Contributors

  • C. Petto - , TUD Dresden University of Technology (Author)
  • A. Nöldner - , Mittweida University of Applied Sciences (Author)
  • M. Valtink - , Institute of Anatomy (Author)
  • D. Labudde - , Mittweida University of Applied Sciences (Author)
  • G. Wittenburg - , TUD Dresden University of Technology (Author)

Abstract

Corneal endothelial or epithelial diseases lead to severe vision impairment. However, transplantation of donor corneae is limited to availability and is impeded by cell loss during tissue processing. Hence, vitrification and cryopreservation of corneal tissue has been under research for a long time (Armitage, 1989; Wusteman et al., 1999), without gaining an alternative to the present usage of organ-cultured or hypothermically stored living tissues (Armitage, 2011). Therefore, the aim in this work was to cryopreserve whole corneas for research purposes and ocular tissue engineering. Methods and Material: Normal porcine corneas were randomly subjected to seven groups: a) Dimethyl sufoxide (DMSO) and Fetal calf serum (FCS), b) 1,2-propanediol (PD) and methyl cellulose (MC), c) 1,2-ethanediol (ED) and hydroxyethyl starch (HES), d) hydroxyethyl cellulose (HEC) and hydroxyethyl starch, e) trehalose (TRE) and povidone (PVP), f) povidone, or g) trehalose. After thawing, corneas were cultured in serum-free medium for three days before subsequent analyses by histology and scanning electron microscope (SEM). Non-frozen corneas were used as controls. Results: Increased stromal thickness was determined for all cryopreserved corneas compared to the controls. Media d and f showed best cryoprotective effects on porcine corneas and supported maintenance of the hexagonal structure of corneal endothelial cells, as visualized by SEM. In this study we established two media suitable to cryopreserve porcine corneal structures.

Details

Original languageEnglish
Title of host publicationIIR Workshop on Cold Applications in Life Sciences - Proceedings
PublisherInternational Institute of Refrigeration
Pages151-154
Number of pages4
ISBN (electronic)9782362150197
Publication statusPublished - 2016
Peer-reviewedYes

Conference

Title2016 IIR Workshop on Cold Applications in Life Sciences
Duration8 - 9 September 2016
CityDresden
CountryGermany

External IDs

ORCID /0000-0003-3205-1876/work/142256463