Extracellular vesicles derived from human ES-MSCs protect retinal ganglion cells and preserve retinal function in a rodent model of optic nerve injury.

Background: Retinal and/or optic nerve injury is one of the leading causes of blindness due to retinal ganglion cell (RGC) degeneration. There have been extensive efforts to suppress this neurodegeneration. Various somatic tissue-derived mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) demonstrated significant neuroprotective and axogenic effects on RGCs.