Current research status and progress in the prevention and treatment of corneal stromal opacity

The significant decline in vision and even corneal blindness caused by corneal scars and stromal opacity is an urgent medical and social problem that needs to be addressed. At present, the prevention and treatment methods of corneal stromal opacity consist of non-cell therapy and cell therapy. Non-cell therapy includes (1) commonly used drugs in clinical practice, such as corticosteroids, mitomycin C, and vitamin C, which has limited efficacy and side effects such as corneal dissolution and ocular toxicity, (2) new drugs that block the transforming growth factor-β/Smad signaling pathway, such as rosiglitazone, amniotic membrane extract, decorin and hepatocyte growth factor, have achieved certain therapeutic effects, (3) gene therapy, which targets bone morphogenetic protein gene and decorin gene, has achieved preliminary effects. Moreover, the methods of gene transfection have shifted from viral vectors to microRNA and nanomaterial carriers. In addition, cell therapy dominated by mesenchymal stem cells and their derivatives is becoming a hot research topic. Mesenchymal stem cells have a wide range of sources, a high in vitro survival rate, and stable properties. They exhibit strong anti-inflammatory, anti-fibrotic, and corneal stromal regenerative effects in corneal injury repair. Mesenchymal stem cells-related research in curing corneal opacity has entered the clinical trial stage and shows a broad clinical application prospect.