Preparation and characterization of decellularized cornea using high-hydrostatic pressurization for corneal tissue engineering

To prepare acellular corneal scaffold, we used high-hydrostatic pressurization (HHP) to decellularize porcine cornea. The HHP method disrupts cells by hydrostatic pressurization, and then the disrupted cells' components are removed by washing with a cell culture medium. Porcine corneas were hydrostatically pressed at 980 MPa at 10 or 30 °C for 10 min to make them opaque. There was no change in the thickness of the corneas immediately after the pressurization, but they swelled during the washing process. The cornea swelling caused by HHP was suppressed when medium containing 3.5% w/v dextran was used. For H-E staining of the cornea decellularized with the HHP method, the complete removal of corneal cells was confirmed. Furthermore, when the corneas were immersed in glycerol for 1 hour, their optical properties were restored to those of native corneas. In an animal study, when acellular porcine corneas were implanted into rabbit cornea, no immune reaction occurred and the turbid corneas became clear. The decellularized corneas obtained through HHP could be useful as a corneal scaffold for tissue regeneration.