Mammals Can Be Stimulated To Regrow Damaged Inner Retina Nerve Cells

God must like fish better than people :)

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/11/081124174951.htm

ScienceDaily (Nov. 24, 2008) — Researchers at the University of Washington (UW) have reported for the first time that mammals can be stimulated to regrow inner nerve cells in their damaged retinas. Located in the back of the eye, the retina's role in vision is to convert light into nerve impulses to the brain.
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"This type of cell exists in all the retinas of all vertebrates," Reh said, "so the cellular source for regeneration is present in the human retina." He added that further studies of the potential of these cells to regenerate and of methods to re-generate them may lead to new treatments for vision loss from retina-damaging diseases, like macular degeneration.

The researchers pointed out the remarkable ability of cold-blooded vertebrates like fish to regenerate their retinas after damage. Birds, which are warm-blooded, have some limited ability to regenerate retinal nerve cells after exposure to nerve toxins. Fish can generate all types of retinal nerve cells, the researcher said, but chicks produce only a few types of retinal nerve cell replacements, and few, if any, receptors for detecting light.

Müller glia cells generally stop dividing after a baby's eyes pass a certain developmental stage. In both fish and birds, the researchers explained, damage to retinal cells prompts the specialized Müller glia cells to start dividing again and to increase their options by becoming a more general type of cell called a progenitor cell. These progenitor cells can then turn into any of several types of specialized nerve cells.

Compared to birds, the scientist said, mammals have an even more limited Müller glia cell response to injury. In an injured mouse or rat retina, the cells may react and become larger, but few start dividing again.