Journal of Clinical and Experimental Ophthalmology
Open Access

Abstract

Time-Dependent Stability of Growth Factors and Endostatin in Human Amniotic Membrane Eye Drops

Ana Boto-de-los-Bueis, Almudena Del-Hierro-Zarzuelo, Ignacio Garcia-Gomez, Belen San-Jose Valiente, Mariano Garcia-Arranz, Aquilino Corral-Aragon and Arantxa Acera

Purpose: Amniotic Membrane (AM) is commonly used as a graft for reconstruction in ocular surface surgery. It has been demonstrated that the beneficial effects of the AM graft are due largely to its content in several growth factors. For this reason, we have measured the levels of growth factors in lyophilized AM eye-drops and their variation over time.
Results: The levels of bFGF and endostatin in 20% and 30% AM eye drops were higher than those of HGF, NGF and EGF. The concentration of all these growth factors and of total protein remained constant over 6 weeks, independent of the dilution factor.
Conclusion: The growth factor and endostatin composition of AM eye drops is stable, at least over 6 weeks, further supporting the viability and potential therapeutic utility of this method for the treatment of ocular surface diseases and warranting its application in clinical trials.