Designing a gas foamed scaffold for keratoprosthesis

Artificial corneas or keratoprostheses are intended to replace diseased or damaged cornea in the event that vision cannot be restored using donor cornea tissue. A new class of artificial cornea comprising a combination of poly (2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate) and poly (methyl methacrylate) was developed which was fabricated using a gas foaming technique. Referred to as the gas-foamed KPro, it was designed to permit clear vision and secure host biointegration to facilitate long-term stability of the device. In vitro assessments show cell growth into the body of the porous edge or skirt of the gas-foamed KPro. The optically transparent center (i.e., core) of the device demonstrates 85 – 90% of light transmittance in the 500 – 700 nm wavelength range. Mechanical tensile data indicates that the gas-foamed KPro is mechanically stable enough to maintain its structure in the ocular environment and also during implantation. The gas-foamed KPro may provide an alternate option for cornea replacement that minimizes post implantation tissue melting, thereby achieving long-term stability in the ocular environment.