[Effects of epidermal growth factor, basic fibroblast growth factor and 5-fluorouracil on human retinal pigment epithelial wound closure in vitro].

OBJECTIVE: To study the effects of epidermal growth factor (EGF), basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) and 5-fluorouracil (5-Fu) on the cell migration and proliferation.
METHODS: Phase-contrast microscopy, cell proliferation assay and wound -closure were used to study the process of cell proliferation and wound healing in a model of human retinal pigment epithelial (RPE) cell damage.
RESULTS: It was found that EGF mainly stimulated proliferation and the migration of individual RPE cells from the wound edge, and induced cellular elongation, while bFGF mainly promoted proliferation and spread of the confluent monolayer into the wound defect, and induced enlargement and flattening of cells. But the effects of EGF, bFGF on wound closure were not very significant; 5-Fu inhibited the spread and proliferation of RPE cells, but had no effects on cell migration.
CONCLUSIONS: EGF and bFGF have no significant effects on wound-healing, perhaps their effects on cell morphology are very important in cell transformation in proliferative vitreoretinopathy (PVR), and 5-Fu can only be a subsidiary drug to prevent PVR.