Researchers Studying How Humans See Color Grow Human Retinas In Lab

[Judi Lynn]

13 October 2018, 12:12 am EDT By Diane Samson Tech Times

Researchers from the Johns Hopkins University in Maryland have successfully grown human retinas inside a laboratory to figure out how humans see colors.

The goal is to provide a better understanding of human biology, specifically how cells transform into specific types responsible for certain functions. This study focuses on the three-cone photoreceptors or the specialized cells that allow people to see red, blue, and green.

The study was published in the journal Science.

Lab-Grown Eyes
The research was quite special because previous studies on vision have used either mice or fishes. However, neither animal has the same color dynamics as humans. So, researchers from the Johns Hopkins University have taken a step forward and created a human retina using stem cells.

The first to grow, according to the study, were the blue-detecting cells, followed by red, then green. The stem cells took months to develop into a full-blown human retina inside their lab.

More:
https://www.techtimes.com/articles/235062/20181013/researchers-studying-how-humans-see-color-grow-human-retinas-in-lab.htm

[Duppers]

1. WOW!! What good news.

"...macula in a lab that might lead to the treatment of macular degeneration in the future."

My 93yo mother is mostly blind due to macular degeneration and sadly my hubby has been told he has the disease. His vision has been worsening by the year, so much so that just recently he's decided to stop driving.

Coincidentally we just got a donation request from JHU Medical Center which I'll send in after hearing of this research. Hubs was successfully treated for thyroid cancer there some years ago, so we've always earmarked our donations for that. Now, we'd love to see this robber of eyesight cured. I guarantee that some DUer reading this now will, at some future time, be affected by macular degeneration.

Go JHU! Best medical research and treatment in the world.