ABSTRACT
The retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) is a polarized monolayer epithelium located in the back of the eye between the photoreceptors and the choroidal blood supply. A deeper understanding of the RPE biology and the mechanisms that control homeostasis in the back of the eye will help illuminate potential disease-causing pathways and provide potential therapeutic interventions. The authors summarize how induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC) technology is providing more insight into RPE biology, mechanisms of RPE-associated blinding eye diseases, and potential therapies for these diseases. RPE is a neuroepithelial-derived, nonmigratory cell type that is formed in vertebrates around the time when morphological eye development begins with the evagination of the optic neuroepithelium toward the surface ectoderm. The iPSC-derived RPE have been tested in preclinical animal models for their ability to rescue vision. In most cases, the preclinical animal of choice is Royal College of Surgeon rat.
