Extracellular, stem cells and regenerative ophthalmology.

Retinal degenerative diseases, including retinitis pigmentosa, age-related macular degeneration, and glaucoma, still lack effective medical treatments. The stem cell-based regenerative approach has been proposed to treat these degenerative diseases. The major challenge for regenerative ophthalmology is to produce enough desirable retinal neurons in vitro from various stem cell types. Extracellular matrix proteins are important for stem cell self-renewal and differentiation in various systems. They have also been used in combination with various growth factors to expand retinal stem cells and produce desirable retinal neuronal types. This review summarizes our current understanding of how extracellular matrix proteins regulate stem cell function and discusses their application in regenerative ophthalmology.