{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,6,24]],"date-time":"2026-06-24T04:41:59Z","timestamp":1782276119559,"version":"3.54.5"},"reference-count":99,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"15","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2025,8,3]],"date-time":"2025-08-03T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1754179200000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"name":"NIH\/NEI","award":["R21EY035833"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["R21EY035833"]}]},{"name":"NIH\/NEI","award":["1R01EY036481"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["1R01EY036481"]}]},{"name":"NIH\/NEI","award":["TrEVR Pilot Research Grant 2024\u20132025"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["TrEVR Pilot Research Grant 2024\u20132025"]}]},{"name":"NIH\/NEI","award":["R21EY035833"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["R21EY035833"]}]},{"name":"NIH\/NEI","award":["1R01EY036481"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["1R01EY036481"]}]},{"name":"NIH\/NEI","award":["TrEVR Pilot Research Grant 2024\u20132025"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["TrEVR Pilot Research Grant 2024\u20132025"]}]},{"name":"Wake Forest School of Medicine Center Translational Team Science Pilot Award 2025, Translational Eye and Vision Research Center","award":["R21EY035833"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["R21EY035833"]}]},{"name":"Wake Forest School of Medicine Center Translational Team Science Pilot Award 2025, Translational Eye and Vision Research Center","award":["1R01EY036481"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["1R01EY036481"]}]},{"name":"Wake Forest School of Medicine Center Translational Team Science Pilot Award 2025, Translational Eye and Vision Research Center","award":["TrEVR Pilot Research Grant 2024\u20132025"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["TrEVR Pilot Research Grant 2024\u20132025"]}]},{"name":"2024 Eye Bank Association of America (EBAA) Pilot Research Grant","award":["R21EY035833"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["R21EY035833"]}]},{"name":"2024 Eye Bank Association of America (EBAA) Pilot Research Grant","award":["1R01EY036481"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["1R01EY036481"]}]},{"name":"2024 Eye Bank Association of America (EBAA) Pilot Research Grant","award":["TrEVR Pilot Research Grant 2024\u20132025"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["TrEVR Pilot Research Grant 2024\u20132025"]}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["IJMS"],"abstract":"<jats:p>The cornea, the transparent anterior window of the eye, critically refracts light and protects intraocular structures. Corneal pathologies, including trauma, infection, chemical injury, metabolic diseases, genetic conditions, and age-related degeneration, can lead to significant visual impairment. While penetrating keratoplasty or full-thickness corneal transplantation remains a standard and effective intervention for severe corneal dysfunction, limitations in donor tissue availability and the risk of immunogenic graft rejection necessitate alternative therapeutic strategies. Furthermore, for cases of isolated epithelial disfunction, a full-thickness cornea graft may not be required or effective. This review examines the potential of corneal epithelial constructs derived from autologous stem cells with functional barrier properties for corneal reconstruction and in vitro pharmacotoxicity testing. In this review, we delineate the current limitations of corneal transplantation, the advantages of stem cell-based approaches, and recent advances in generating engineered corneal epithelium. Finally, we address remaining technical challenges and propose future research directions aimed at clinical translation.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/ijms26157501","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2025,8,6]],"date-time":"2025-08-06T07:45:11Z","timestamp":1754466311000},"page":"7501","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":2,"title":["Stem Cell-Derived Corneal Epithelium: Engineering Barrier Function for Ocular Surface Repair"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"26","author":[{"given":"Emily Elizabeth","family":"Fresenko","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine, School of Medicine, Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem, NC 27101, USA"},{"name":"School of Medicine, Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem, NC 27101, USA"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Jian-Xing","family":"Ma","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biochemistry, School of Medicine, Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem, NC 27101, USA"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Matthew","family":"Giegengack","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Ophthalmology, School of Medicine, Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem, NC 27101, USA"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Atalie Carina","family":"Thompson","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Ophthalmology, School of Medicine, Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem, NC 27101, USA"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-8186-2160","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Anthony","family":"Atala","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine, School of Medicine, Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem, NC 27101, USA"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-1939-9149","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Andrew J. W.","family":"Huang","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-5708-9718","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Yuanyuan","family":"Zhang","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine, School of Medicine, Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem, NC 27101, USA"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2025,8,3]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","unstructured":"(2017). Kanski\u2019s Clinical Ophthalmology, A Systematic Approach, Elsevier. 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