Now in our 13th year of bringing you beautiful imagery from biomedical science every day

Search the archive of over 4000 images

Settling Sight

Immunosuppression enables transplanted human photoreceptor precursor cells to integrate and survive in dog retinas

24 August 2022

Settling Sight

Restoring sight to the blind is the sort of fanciful medical marvel being brought into the realms of possibility by research. A new study considers the idea of introducing healthy cells to an irreparably damaged retina to restore function. Like a child settling into a new school, fitting in and making connections is key to survival. This is difficult to achieve, but functional links between new photoreceptor cells in the outer layer of the retina and cells in deeper layers, which carry signals from the sensors to the brain, is essential. The researchers grew photoreceptor cells from precursor cells in a dish, then transplanted these to dog retinas (pictured, new cells in red). With a new surgical technique, immunosuppression to prevent the host rejecting the transplants, and novel visualisation techniques they saw the cells survive and form connections with the existing structures (green), bringing the ultimate goal into sight.

Written by Anthony Lewis

Search The Archive

Submit An Image

Follow on Tumblr

Follow on Instagram

What is BPoD?

BPoD stands for Biomedical Picture of the Day. Managed by the MRC Laboratory of Medical Sciences until Jul 2023, it is now run independently by a dedicated team of scientists and writers. The website aims to engage everyone, young and old, in the wonders of biology, and its influence on medicine. The ever-growing archive of more than 4000 research images documents over a decade of progress. Explore the collection and see what you discover. Images are kindly provided for inclusion on this website through the generosity of scientists across the globe.

Read More

BPoD is also available in Catalan at www.bpod.cat with translations by the University of Valencia.