Retinal cell transplantation Innovation also is important to Kaplan. He has moved on from his early work as an immunologist and, with Matthew A. Thomas, M.D., clinical assistant professor of ophthalmology and visual sciences, was the first to perform submacular microsurgery, operating on unhealthy tissue beneath the center of the retina. The retina is like the film in a camera. Light is focused there, and retinal cells process the light into nerve impulses that can be interpreted in the brain. In retinitis pigmentosa, for instance, a defect kills the rods, and when they die, the cones also die.
Blindness is the result.
In another disease called age-related macular degeneration, a cell layer known as the retinal pigment epithelium becomes damaged. Those cells nourish photoreceptors, and without the nourishment, the photoreceptors begin to die. Age-related macular degeneration is the leading cause of blindness in Americans older than 55. Since Kaplan and Thomas first began performing surgery beneath the retina, their tools and techniques have been refined to the point that Kaplan now is on the verge of uniting his surgical proficiency with his immunologic expertise. He is heading an effort to transplant retinal cells with the hope of someday providing treatment to patients with these blinding retinal disorders.