Abstract Retinal degenerative diseases, including retinitis pigmentosa, proliferative diabetic retinopathy, proliferative vitreoretinopathy, age-related macular degeneration, etc., which culminate in photoreceptor loss, are the leading causes of irreversible blindness. The development of stem cell transplanation gives hope for patients who are suffering from these diseases. Recently, a population of very small embryonic-like stem cells (VSELSCs) which express CXCR4, is identified in adult tissue,especially in bone marrow. VSELSCs express several markers of embryonic and primordial germ cells,and research has shown that these cells may differentiate into cells from all three germ layers. With their capacity to give rise to specialized cells, VSELSCs are identified as promising candidates for degenerative diseases. This review focuses on current research on VSELSCs, and discusses potential applications in treating retinal degenerative diseases.
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