Biomimetic peptide-conjugated membranes for developing an artificial cornea

The corneal endothelium is composed of a single layer of specialized endothelial cells, protecting, and nourishing the inner surface of the cornea. Corneal endothelial cells do not proliferate after birth and their number decrease with age. Trauma, inflammation, or surgical intervention can cause cell loss. When damage is extensive and the density of corneal endothelial cells decreases to a critical level, it results in corneal edema and vision loss. Besides them, when corneal endothelium has irreversible damage, the only treatment way is corneal transplantation. But there are some drawbacks such as finding donors, immune reactions, and the number of patients waiting on the transplantation lists for years. Tissue engineering approaches can provide promising alternatives for the regeneration of corneal endothelium tissue. Peptides can be used to modify and functionalize the scaffolds, allowing for the production of bioactive and biomimetic surfaces. Peptide-modified scaffold surfaces might direct and enhance the behaviors of cells. In this study, the aim was to functionalize the polycaprolactone (PCL) membranes with tissue-specific peptides and to characterize the peptide-conjugated membranes by Fourier-Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), and X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS) analysis. The synthesized peptides were successfully conjugated on the PCL biomembranes.