Title : Bioengineering human cornea for global supply
Abstract:
The fight against corneal blindness is a significant global challenge. Impacting all age groups, corneal disease and injury represent the 3rd most common cause of blindness affecting approximately 6.2 million people worldwide. Corneal transplantation, which uses donor corneal tissue, remains the current standard therapy. However an acute global shortage of donor corneal tissue continues to prevent access to treatment. Worldwide, donor corneas are available for only 1 in 70 patients, with 53% of the world’s population being unable to directly access required tissues. In order to address tissue shortages, attempts have been made to develop artificial corneas using synthetic materials and natural derived materials, and the journey of bioengineering human cornea has been ongoing for more than a decade.
To date, there have been significant breakthroughs in technology and material innovation in tissue engineering, making viable bioengineered human corneas seem feasible. However, addressing the global supply issue is another challenge that has been rarely discussed. This talk aims to review the current challenges and breakthroughs in human corneal bioengineering, elucidating the various cellular, material, and engineering approaches used in both research and industry. Additionally, it will address how these innovations can be scaled up for production and transportation to meet global demand, discussing each step in the process of scaling up the production and distribution of bioengineered corneas for worldwide supply.
