Adult human RPE can be activated into a multipotent stem cell that produces mesenchymal derivatives

Enrique Salero, Timothy A. Blenkinsop, Barbara Corneo, Ashley Harris, David Rabin, Jeffrey H. Stern, Sally Temple

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

219 Scopus citations

Abstract

The retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) is a monolayer of cells underlying and supporting the neural retina. It begins as a plastic tissue, capable, in some species, of generating lens and retina, but differentiates early in development and remains normally nonproliferative throughout life. Here we show that a subpopulation of adult human RPE cells can be activated in vitro to a self-renewing cell, the retinal pigment epithelial stem cell (RPESC) that loses RPE markers, proliferates extensively, and can redifferentiate into stable cobblestone RPE monolayers. Clonal studies demonstrate that RPESCs are multipotent and in defined conditions can generate both neural and mesenchymal progeny. This plasticity may explain human pathologies in which mesenchymal fates are seen in the eye, for example in proliferative vitroretinopathy (PVR) and phthisis bulbi. This study establishes the RPESC as an accessible, human CNS-derived multipotent stem cell, useful for the study of fate choice, replacement therapy, and disease modeling.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)88-95
Number of pages8
JournalCell Stem Cell
Volume10
Issue number1
DOIs
StatePublished - 6 Jan 2012
Externally publishedYes

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Adult human RPE can be activated into a multipotent stem cell that produces mesenchymal derivatives'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this