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. 2022 Oct 16;11(20):3247. doi: 10.3390/cells11203247

Figure 1.

Figure 1

Schematic of the limbal niche. The corneoscleral limbus contains the Palisades of Vogt (PV) and limbal epithelial crypts. The limbal epithelial stem cells (LESCs) are in close contact with niche cells, including melanocytes and mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) in the limbal epithelial crypts. The basement membranes of the cornea, limbus, and conjunctiva have different constructs, which are in turn necessary for maintaining proper homeostasis. In the basal epithelial layer of the limbal epithelial crypts, the LESCs divide symmetrically into two identical cells (in the horizontal plane) or asymmetrically to give rise to another LESC and a transient amplifying cell (TAC, in both vertical and horizontal planes). Then, TACs divide into postmitotic cells (PMCs) as they migrate centripetally. The PMCs then differentiate into terminally differentiated cells (TDCs) and are shed from the corneal surface.. Abbreviations: LESC, limbal epithelial stem cell, TAC, transient amplifying cell, PMC, post-mitotic cell, TDC, terminally differentiated cell, MSC, mesenchymal stem cell. Reproduced from [12].