Title |
Telomerase Immortalization of Human Corneal Endothelial Cells Yields Functional Hexagonal Monolayers
|
---|---|
Published in |
PLOS ONE, December 2012
|
DOI | 10.1371/journal.pone.0051427 |
Pubmed ID | |
Authors |
Thore Schmedt, Yuming Chen, Tracy T. Nguyen, Shimin Li, Joseph A. Bonanno, Ula V. Jurkunas |
Abstract |
Human corneal endothelial cells (HCEnCs) form a monolayer of hexagonal cells whose main function is to maintain corneal clarity by regulating corneal hydration. HCEnCs are derived from neural crest and are arrested in the post-mitotic state. Thus cell loss due to aging or corneal endothelial disorders leads to corneal edema and blindness-the leading indication for corneal transplantation. Here we show the existence of morphologically distinct subpopulations of HCEnCs that are interspersed among primary cells and exhibit enhanced self-renewal competence and lack of phenotypic signs of cellular senescence. Colonies of these uniform and hexagonal HCEnCs (HCEnC-21) were selectively isolated and demonstrated high proliferative potential that was dependent on endogenous upregulation of telomerase and cyclin D/CDK4. Further transduction of HCEnC-21 with telomerase yielded a highly proliferative corneal endothelial cell line (HCEnT-21T) that was devoid of oncogenic transformation and retained critical corneal endothelial cell characteristics and functionality. This study will significantly impact the fields of corneal cell biology and regenerative medicine. |
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