Studying the Proliferative Activity of Human Corneal Stromal Cell Populations.

The proliferative activity of populations of stromal cells (fibroblasts) obtained from human corneal lenticles under conditions of their differentiation into keratocytes was studied. It was shown that during differentiation, the number of dividing fibroblasts and the frequency of divisions, and motor activity of these cells (speed of movement along the cell trajectory and the length of the trajectory) sharply decreased. These findings indicate a decrease in the proliferative activity of fibroblasts under conditions of their differentiation and transformation into keratocytes. A period of 17 days is sufficient for differentiation of corneal fibroblasts into keratocytes.