Background: Transplants of the retina are among the new strategies being used in the treatment of genetic and degenerative macular diseases. Moreover, various cell cultures are being tested to treat retinal disorders.
Material/methods: Literature dated from 2004 to 2011 was comprehensively examined via Medline and PubMed searches for the following terms: auto-, homo-, heterologous transplantation, retina, stem cells, cultivated cells.
Results: Tissue and cell therapy of retinal diseases are reviewed, including full-thickness retina/retinal pigment epithelium (RPE)/choroid graft; full and partial thickness RPE/choroid complex grafts; RPE/Bruch membrane complex graft; and RPE, iris pigment epithelium and stem cell grafts. Recommendations for transplants, as well as the benefits and weaknesses of specific techniques in retina transplants, are discussed.
Conclusions: Auto- and allogenic transplants of a full or partial thickness retina/RPE/ Bruch membrane/choroid complex represent an alternative treatment offered to patients with some macular diseases. Stem cell transplantation to reconstruct and regenerate the macula requires further biomolecular and animal research studies.