Lumican Extraction from Amniotic Membrane and Determination of its Storage Temperature.

Lumican is a small leucine-rich proteoglycan in the human amniotic membrane (AM) that promotes corneal epithelialization and the organization of collagen fibers, maintaining corneal transparency. In the present work, a method for protein extraction from AM to obtain lumican is proposed. Additionally, the stability of lumican in the AM extract (AME) stored at different temperatures and time periods is evaluated. 100 mg of AM were thawed and mechanical de-epithelialized. The de-epithelialized AM was frozen and crushed until a fine powder was obtained, which was solubilized with 2.5 mL of saline buffer with protease inhibitors and centrifuged for protein extraction. The supernatant was collected and stored at -20 °C, 4 °C, and room temperature (RT) for 6, 12, 20, and 32 days. Afterward, lumican was quantified in each AME. This technique allows an accessible and acquirable protocol for lumican extraction from AM. Lumican concentration was affected by storage time and temperature conditions. Lumican in the AME of 12 days stored at -20 °C and 4 °C was significantly higher than other AME. This lumican extraction could be useful for developing treatments and pharmaceutical solutions. Further studies are needed to determine the uses of AME lumican in re-epithelialization and wound healing process.

Feasibility and safety of vitrectomy under topical anesthesia in an office-based setting.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the feasibility and safety of office-based vitreoretinal procedures. Methods: Patients undergoing primary elective pars plana vitrectomy were elected for surgery in an office-based setting (performed in a minor procedure room under topical anesthesia [TA] and oral anxiolysis). Rates of surgical objective achievement, surgical timing, and comfort were recorded to evaluate feasibility. Intraoperative and postoperative adverse events were assessed to evaluate safety. Results: Office-based vitrectomy surgery was performed in 34 eyes of 30 patients. The mean surgical time was 12.351 ± 8.21 min. Surgical objectives were achieved in 100% of cases. The mean best-corrected visual acuity improvement was 9.08 letters (P < 0.0001). During most parts of the procedure, no patient reported pain or discomfort. Neither intraoperative nor postoperative adverse events were reported until the final follow-up visit. Conclusion: Office-based vitreoretinal procedures under TA could be as feasible and as safe as vitreoretinal procedures under conventional anesthesia.