Twenty years of limbal epithelial therapy: an update on managing limbal stem cell deficiency.

Limbal stem cell damage after chemical injury, autoimmune disorders or iatrogenic trauma leads to corneal conjunctivalisation with new vessel formation, epithelium instability and visual loss. Limbal stem cell transplantation includes reconstructive surgical procedures to restore a corneal epithelium. The recognised options are: conjunctival limbal autograft, in which stem cells are taken from the patient's healthy eye; conjunctival limbal allograft, in which stem cells are taken from a living, related or dead donor and the keratolimbal allograft.

Identification of Therapeutic Targets of Inflammatory Monocyte Recruitment to Modulate the Allogeneic Injury to Donor Cornea.

Purpose: We sought to test the hypothesis that monocytes contribute to the immunopathogenesis of corneal allograft rejection and identify therapeutic targets to inhibit monocyte recruitment.

Methods: Monocytes and proinflammatory mediators within anterior chamber samples during corneal graft rejection were quantified by flow cytometry and multiplex protein assays. Lipopolysaccharide or IFN-γ stimulation of monocyte-derived macrophages (MDMs) was used to generate inflammatory conditioned media (CoM).

Suppression of the allogeneic response by the anti-allergy drug N-(3,4-dimethoxycinnamonyl) anthranilic acid results from T-cell cycle arrest.

Previously we have shown that indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase (IDO) and the tryptophan metabolite, 3-hydroxykynurenine (3HK) can prolong corneal allograft survival. IDO modulates the immune response by depletion of the essential amino acid tryptophan by breakdown to kynurenines, which themselves act directly on T lymphocytes. The tryptophan metabolite analogue N-(3,4-dimethoxycinnamonyl) anthranilic acid (DAA, 'Tranilast') shares the anthranilic acid core with 3HK.

3-hydroxykynurenine suppresses CD4+ T-cell proliferation, induces T-regulatory-cell development, and prolongs corneal allograft survival.

Purpose: IDO (indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase) modulates the immune response by depletion of the essential amino acid tryptophan, and IDO overexpression has been shown to prolong corneal allograft survival. This study was conducted to examine the effect of kynurenines, the products of tryptophan breakdown and known to act directly on T lymphocytes, on corneal graft survival.

Methods: The effects of kynurenines on T-cell proliferation and death, T-regulatory-cell development, and dendritic cell function, phenotype, and viability were analyzed in vitro.

Herpes simplex keratitis misdiagnosed as rheumatoid arthritis-related peripheral ulcerative keratitis.

Purpose: To report 2 cases of herpes simplex keratitis misdiagnosed as rheumatoid arthritis (RA)-related peripheral ulcerative keratitis (PUK), where isolation of the herpes simplex virus (HSV) led to a complete modification in management.

Methods: This is a case report.

Results: Two patients with RA presented with painful red right eyes.