Strategies for developing decellularized corneal scaffolds

The main obstacle to successfully engineering corneal tissue has been the replication of the structural and biochemical composition of native cornea in a scaffold. In recent years decellularized corneas have been under investigation as an alternative scaffold source for use in engineering cornea. Several strategies for lysing cells and removing cellular material from corneas are discussed. The removal of such cellular components and antigen molecules whilst maintaining the corneal extracellular matrix components and architecture is required to generate scaffolds capable of generating functional tissue grafts suitable for transplantation. Different techniques to ascertain the degree of decellularization and the change in structural, mechanical and biological characteristics of the corneas after treatment are examined. In addition several in vitro and in vivo studies have been performed to ascertain the suitability of decellularized corneas as a scaffold for restoring vision. ► Decellularized corneal scaffolds represent a new approach for corneal repair. ► Different techniques for decellularizing cornea are discussed in detail. ► Different approaches to tissue characterization are reviewed. ► Results suggest decellularized corneas may be suitable for transplantation.