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Autologous ex Vivo Conjunctival Epithelial Cell Expansion for Ocular Surface Transplantation

Primary Purpose

Pterygium, Ocular Surface Disease, Stevens Johnson Syndrome

Status
Completed
Phase
Phase 3
Locations
Singapore
Study Type
Interventional
Intervention
Cultivated conjunctival transplantation
Sponsored by
Singapore National Eye Centre
About
Eligibility
Locations
Outcomes
Full info

About this trial

This is an interventional treatment trial for Pterygium focused on measuring Culture, Conjunctiva, transplantation, pterygium, ocular surface

Eligibility Criteria

21 Years - 90 Years (Adult, Older Adult)All SexesAccepts Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion Criteria: Patients with ocular surface disorders, e.g. primary pterygium, scheduled for elective surgical excision Indications for surgery will be the presence of ocular surface symptoms in the affected eye, loss of visual acuity from visual axis obscuration or irregular astigmatism, or cosmesis. Only one eye of a patient will be eligible for study entry. Patients who are adult males and females who are aged 21 or older, and are considered mentally sound Patients who are willing to undergo long-term follow-up, as outlined in this protocol Patients who have signed an informed consent form that has been approved by the SNEC Ethics Committee. Exclusion Criteria: Patients less than 21 years of age Patients who are incapable, either by law or of mental state, of giving consent in their own right Patients who are either unable or unwilling to keep scheduled appointments and adhere to the other aspects of the protocol Patients who are pregnant or breastfeeding Patients with a history of drug allergy Patients who have received an investigational drug within 28 days preceding surgery Patients with intraocular pressure over 21 mmHg or history of ocular hypertension or glaucoma Patients who are documented to be steroid responders

Sites / Locations

  • Singapore National Eye Centre

Outcomes

Primary Outcome Measures

Epithelialisation
Graft integrity
Resolution of inflammation
Visual acuity
Complications

Secondary Outcome Measures

Degree of scarring

Full Information

First Posted
June 29, 2006
Last Updated
January 11, 2010
Sponsor
Singapore National Eye Centre
Collaborators
International Stem Cell Forum, National Medical Research Council (NMRC), Singapore, Singapore Eye Research Institute
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1. Study Identification

Unique Protocol Identification Number
NCT00346450
Brief Title
Autologous ex Vivo Conjunctival Epithelial Cell Expansion for Ocular Surface Transplantation
Official Title
Autologous ex Vivo Conjunctival Epithelial Cell Expansion for Ocular Surface
Study Type
Interventional

2. Study Status

Record Verification Date
January 2010
Overall Recruitment Status
Completed
Study Start Date
October 2001 (undefined)
Primary Completion Date
undefined (undefined)
Study Completion Date
December 2003 (Actual)

3. Sponsor/Collaborators

Name of the Sponsor
Singapore National Eye Centre
Collaborators
International Stem Cell Forum, National Medical Research Council (NMRC), Singapore, Singapore Eye Research Institute

4. Oversight

5. Study Description

Brief Summary
To evaluate the use of cultivated conjunctival epithelial equivalents for the treatment of ocular diseases
Detailed Description
Ex-vivo autologous conjunctiva expansion on human amniotic membrane (HAM), followed by clinical transplantation surgery Preparation of HAM. Human amniotic membrane (HAM) prepared for human use will be obtained from the Singapore Eye Bank. HAM will be rapidly thawed in a 37oC water bath, and washed with phosphate buffered saline. The amniotic epithelium will be removed using a combination of Dispase digestion and mechanical scraping. Complete removal of the amniotic epithelial cells will be confirmed by microscopy. The HAM is then placed on a culture plate, with the basement-membrane side up, and incubated with DMEM at 37oC in an atmosphere of 5% CO2 and 95% air overnight before use. Ex-vivo expansion of conjunctival cells on HAM. A forniceal conjunctival biopsy will be performed in patients undergoing pterygium surgery. The tissue will be cultured on the HAM either as a cell suspension or as explants, with the methods described above. The media is changed every 2 days and the culture is maintained for 2-3 weeks. The cells will form a confluent sheet and begin to stratify and differentiate. The tissue will then be raised to an air-liquid interface to promote differentiation. Histological analysis. The conjunctival epithelial cell sheets on the amniotic membrane will be examined by light microscopy. Samples of the tissue will be fixed and processed with the use of standard histological procedures and stained with H&E and PAS reagents. Electron microscopic examination will be carried for the tissue. The sections will also be subjected to immunohistochemical analysis for cytokeratin markers. Clinical Transplantation of cultivated conjunctival epithelial cells on HAM Preparation of cultivated conjunctival cells on amniotic membrane Patients with various ocular surface disorders will be selected for the initial series of transplantations. All patients will undergo full counselling for informed consent for the procedures. A forniceal conjunctival biopsy will be performed on the contralateral healthy eye. PI will perform the transplantations of autologous conjunctival sheet grown on human amniotic membrane in these patients. The diseased area will be excised using the standard surgical technique. The defect will be covered with the sheet of cultured conjunctival cells on the HAM with the epithelial side up. The graft is secured to the adjacent conjunctiva with interrupted 8/0 vicryl sutures. A planotherapeutic bandage contact lens is placed to protect the tissue from lid trauma. Topical steroid and antibiotic eyedrops will be administered daily to reduce the ocular inflammation. Survival of conjunctiva on the amniotic membrane will be closely monitored and patients will be followed-up at 3 monthly intervals up to one year. During these visits, these patients will have anterior segment photographs taken and fluorescein staining to monitor the progress of healing. Transplantations may also be carried out on selected patients with ocular surface disease, for example, ocular cicatricial pemphigoid, Stevens Johnson syndrome and alkali injury. For these severe conditions, this procedure may prove to be an important adjunct to other procedures, such as limbal stem cell transplantation. If the initial study is successful, a randomised clinical trial comparing this procedure with conventional conjunctival autografting and conventional amniotic membrane transplantation will be planned. Therefore if found to be successful, transplantation of cultured conjunctival cells on HAM may eventually be used as a primary procedure or as an adjunctive procedure for these visually debilitating conditions.

6. Conditions and Keywords

Primary Disease or Condition Being Studied in the Trial, or the Focus of the Study
Pterygium, Ocular Surface Disease, Stevens Johnson Syndrome, Chemical Injury
Keywords
Culture, Conjunctiva, transplantation, pterygium, ocular surface

7. Study Design

Primary Purpose
Treatment
Study Phase
Phase 3
Interventional Study Model
Single Group Assignment
Masking
None (Open Label)
Allocation
Non-Randomized
Enrollment
80 (Anticipated)

8. Arms, Groups, and Interventions

Intervention Type
Procedure
Intervention Name(s)
Cultivated conjunctival transplantation
Primary Outcome Measure Information:
Title
Epithelialisation
Title
Graft integrity
Title
Resolution of inflammation
Title
Visual acuity
Title
Complications
Secondary Outcome Measure Information:
Title
Degree of scarring

10. Eligibility

Sex
All
Minimum Age & Unit of Time
21 Years
Maximum Age & Unit of Time
90 Years
Accepts Healthy Volunteers
Accepts Healthy Volunteers
Eligibility Criteria
Inclusion Criteria: Patients with ocular surface disorders, e.g. primary pterygium, scheduled for elective surgical excision Indications for surgery will be the presence of ocular surface symptoms in the affected eye, loss of visual acuity from visual axis obscuration or irregular astigmatism, or cosmesis. Only one eye of a patient will be eligible for study entry. Patients who are adult males and females who are aged 21 or older, and are considered mentally sound Patients who are willing to undergo long-term follow-up, as outlined in this protocol Patients who have signed an informed consent form that has been approved by the SNEC Ethics Committee. Exclusion Criteria: Patients less than 21 years of age Patients who are incapable, either by law or of mental state, of giving consent in their own right Patients who are either unable or unwilling to keep scheduled appointments and adhere to the other aspects of the protocol Patients who are pregnant or breastfeeding Patients with a history of drug allergy Patients who have received an investigational drug within 28 days preceding surgery Patients with intraocular pressure over 21 mmHg or history of ocular hypertension or glaucoma Patients who are documented to be steroid responders
Overall Study Officials:
First Name & Middle Initial & Last Name & Degree
Leonard P Ang, FRCS
Organizational Affiliation
SNEC, NUS
Official's Role
Principal Investigator
First Name & Middle Initial & Last Name & Degree
Donald T Tan, FRCS
Organizational Affiliation
SNEC, SERI, NUS
Official's Role
Principal Investigator
Facility Information:
Facility Name
Singapore National Eye Centre
City
Singapore
ZIP/Postal Code
168751
Country
Singapore

12. IPD Sharing Statement

Citations:
PubMed Identifier
15161841
Citation
Ang LP, Tan DT, Beuerman RW, Lavker RM. Development of a conjunctival epithelial equivalent with improved proliferative properties using a multistep serum-free culture system. Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci. 2004 Jun;45(6):1789-95. doi: 10.1167/iovs.03-1361.
Results Reference
result
PubMed Identifier
15287367
Citation
Ang LP, Tan DT, Phan TT, Li J, Beuerman R, Lavker RM. The in vitro and in vivo proliferative capacity of serum-free cultivated human conjunctival epithelial cells. Curr Eye Res. 2004 May;28(5):307-17. doi: 10.1076/ceyr.28.5.307.28677.
Results Reference
result

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Autologous ex Vivo Conjunctival Epithelial Cell Expansion for Ocular Surface Transplantation

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