Alloplant is a biomaterial made from cartilage used for

eye surgery Eye surgery, also known as ophthalmic or ocular surgery, is surgery performed on the eye or its adnexa, by an ophthalmologist or sometimes, an optometrist. Eye surgery is synonymous with ophthalmology. The eye is a very fragile organ, and requ ...

in some clinics in Russia. Experts warn that claims about its alleged regenerative properties by its inventor have not been documented in medical literature.

Origin

The compound has been developed by Russian ophthalmologist and mystic Ernst Muldashev in the 1970s. Muldashev claims to have invested Allplant after an expedition in

Tibet Tibet (; ''Böd''; ) is a region in East Asia, covering much of the Tibetan Plateau and spanning about . It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people. Also resident on the plateau are some other ethnic groups such as Monpa people, ...

gave him innate and unprecedented understanding of certain worldly ideas and concepts beyond

peer-reviewed Peer review is the evaluation of work by one or more people with similar competencies as the producers of the work (peers). It functions as a form of self-regulation by qualified members of a profession within the relevant field. Peer review ...

medicine. According to Muldashev, Alloplant is biomaterial harvested from recently deceased donors. He used Alloplant in eye surgery to improve the rejection rate of tissue

grafts Grafting refers to a surgical procedure to move tissue from one site to another on the body, or from another creature, without bringing its own blood supply with it. Instead, a new blood supply grows in after it is placed. A similar technique ...

. After a high-profile case in 2000 where a patient gained some eye function despite an allegedly incurable condition, Muldashev eventually gained government support to use his compound at an ophthalmology and plastic surgery clinic in his home city of

Ufa Ufa ( ba, Өфө , Öfö; russian: Уфа́, r=Ufá, p=ʊˈfa) is the largest city and capital of Bashkortostan, Russia. The city lies at the confluence of the Belaya and Ufa rivers, in the centre-north of Bashkortostan, on hills forming the ...

Claims

Muldashev has claimed variously that Alloplant works by regenerating dead tissue it's in contact with, or by attracting stem cells that proceed to differentiate to rebuild damaged structures in the eye, or prevent further spread of the condition. He claims this material, surgically implanted in the eye, will help cure or stop the progression of a vast array of diseases and conditions, such as

retinitis pigmentosa Retinitis pigmentosa (RP) is a genetic disorder of the eyes that causes loss of vision. Symptoms include trouble seeing at night and decreasing peripheral vision (side and upper or lower visual field). As peripheral vision worsens, people may ...

diabetic retinopathy Diabetic retinopathy (also known as diabetic eye disease), is a medical condition in which damage occurs to the retina due to diabetes mellitus. It is a leading cause of blindness in developed countries. Diabetic retinopathy affects up to 80 perc ...

, age-related

macular degeneration Macular degeneration, also known as age-related macular degeneration (AMD or ARMD), is a medical condition which may result in blurred or no vision in the center of the visual field. Early on there are often no symptoms. Over time, however, som ...

optic nerve In neuroanatomy, the optic nerve, also known as the second cranial nerve, cranial nerve II, or simply CN II, is a paired cranial nerve that transmits visual system, visual information from the retina to the brain. In humans, the optic nerve i ...

atrophy Atrophy is the partial or complete wasting away of a part of the body. Causes of atrophy include mutations (which can destroy the gene to build up the organ), poor nourishment, poor circulation, loss of hormonal support, loss of nerve supply t ...

glaucoma Glaucoma is a group of eye diseases that result in damage to the optic nerve (or retina) and cause vision loss. The most common type is open-angle (wide angle, chronic simple) glaucoma, in which the drainage angle for fluid within the eye rem ...

, progressive

myopia Near-sightedness, also known as myopia and short-sightedness, is an eye disease where light focuses in front of, instead of on, the retina. As a result, distant objects appear blurry while close objects appear normal. Other symptoms may include ...

and

retinopathy of prematurity Retinopathy of prematurity (ROP), also called retrolental fibroplasia (RLF) and Terry syndrome, is a disease of the eye affecting prematurely born babies generally having received neonatal intensive care, in which oxygen therapy is used due to ...

. Expert ophthalmologists contacted by the media say scientific literature include no studies validating Muldashev's claims about Alloplant. In 2009, the ophthalmologist-in-chief for the

University Health Network University Health Network (UHN) is a public research and teaching hospital network in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is the largest health research organization in Canada and ranks first in Canada for total research funding. It was named Canada's t ...

insisted the treatment had not been presented or discussed in medical conferences. The chief of clinical trials at the

U.S. National Institutes of Health The National Institutes of Health, commonly referred to as NIH (with each letter pronounced individually), is the primary agency of the United States government responsible for biomedical and public health research. It was founded in the late 1 ...

's Eye Institute indicated she was unaware of Allopant. Two ophthalmologists from Nevada had published a paper in 2008 concluding that the alloplant method reduced

intraocular pressure Intraocular pressure (IOP) is the fluid pressure inside the eye. Tonometry is the method eye care professionals use to determine this. IOP is an important aspect in the evaluation of patients at risk of glaucoma. Most tonometers are calibrated to ...

, one of the main ways of treating glaucoma, and assisted tissue regeneration.(Medscape Journal of Medicine) Alloplant Implant: A Novel Biomaterial in the Management of Recalcitrant Glaucoma
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References

{{reflist Transplantation medicine Tissues (biology)