The retinal pigment epithelium (RPE), a monolayer of cuboidal epithelial cells that sits
between the photoreceptors and the choriocapillaris, is the initial site of insult in several
inherited and acquired blinding diseases, including Stargardt disease, Best disease and
age-related macular degeneration (AMD)(Ambati and Fowler, 2012, Bok, 2005, Rattner and
Nathans, 2006). This central role for the RPE in retinal dysfunction is largely due to the many
critical functions it performs to ensure healthy vision (Bok, 1993, Strauss, 2005)(Fig. 1): the …