A sensitive method for testing the quality of organ culture media and of individual medium components in a cornea bank

Background: It has been suggested that variations in the quality of organ culture preservation media are responsible for variations in early-postoperative graft morphology. Spates of such variations have been observed repeatedly for short periods. This paper reports the results of a series of grafts with low postoperative clearing observed during a period of 6 weeks. Simultaneously, preoperative phase-contrast microscopy evaluation of the corneal endothelium revealed that an unusually large proportion of donor corneae were unsuitable for transplantation. Methods: The corneal storage media were therefore rigorously screened, paying particular attention to specific components and properties of the medium, including L-glutamine, amphotericin B. water quality pH, and the glassware used. Possible toxic effects were identified by means of a sensitive growth assay performed using isolated human corneal endothelial cells. Results: The evaluation demonstrated that both the water quality and the L-glutamine which had been used for preparation of the medium were substandard during the period in which poor clinical results were obtained. a Conclusion: It is recommended that cornea banks undertaking long-term organ culture use standardized protocols and carefully monitored equipment. The quality of the basal media and supplements should be routinely checked.