Thanks Stem Cells! Vision Restored!

Attempted hero, Russell Turnbull, lost most of the sight in his right eye. At 25, Russel after tried to break up a fight on a bus and ended up being sprayed in the eye with ammonia. For him, the reward for said heroism was what’s known as Limbal Stem Cell Deficiency.

Nature.com - Limbal stem cells act as a physiological barrier to the ingress of conjunctival cells across the cornea. Deficiency leads to conjunctivalisation of the cornea, with the epithelium being of conjunctival phenotype typified by goblet cells, surface irregularity, and vascularisation.

This affliction which caused him great pain, is all behind him now. Russel went through a grafting procedure which removed healthy tissue from his fully functioning left eye, and had it implanted into his winkey, ammonia sprayed, right eye. To see him muttering out his description of the fight and taking an eye exam, check out the video below.

The video states that the procedure was performed 3 years ago, so I don’t know if it took that long for his vision to return or if news of it’s working took 3 years to make it’s way state side. He’s still wearing glasses too, so I wouldn’t recommend anyone running out and getting it done just yet. I also recommend that, if some bloke is acting a fool on the bus, just hit him in the head from behind with a cricket stick. That’s what they play over there, right? Cricket?

Link -via Engadget, Channel4