Abstract
Retinal degenerative diseases such as retinitis pigmentosa (RP) lack effective therapies capable of restoring vision. Photoreceptor precursor cell (PPC) transplantation is a promising regenerative strategy. This study utilized the PPCs efficiently derived from human-induced pluripotent stem cell (hiPSC). The employment of AM580, a chemical compound of oxidatively stable retinoid analogs, facilitated the differentiation of hiPSCs into CRX+/LHX4+ PPCs with 99.9% purity. Furthermore, the retinal protective effect of PPCs was confirmed by the result of a bi-dimensional increase in intensity and space in the N-methyl-N-nitrosourea-induced RP model. Besides the retinal protective effects, donor PPCs were observed to express rod- and cone-specific markers and to develop CtBP2+ presynaptic specializations that were located in close proximity to host bipolar cells. These observations are consistent with the ability of hiPSC-derived PPCs to engage in structural repair processes, supporting further investigation into their potential for treating retinal degeneration.