To provide an improved therapy for the retina.SOLUTION: According to the present invention, there are provided methods for improved cell-based therapies for retinal degeneration and for differentiating human embryonic stem cells and human embryo-derived cells into retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) cells and other retinal progenitor cells. In one embodiment of the present invention, a method for isolating RPE-like cells comprises the steps of (a) culturing hES cells in a medium supporting the growth of hES cells and transdifferentiation thereof into RPE-like cells; (b) selecting the cells of step (a) that exhibit signs of differentiation along the nervous system; (c) passaging the cells selected in step (b) using an enzyme selected from a group of trypsin, collagenase IV, collagenase I, and dispase until pigmented epithelial islets appear or the number thereof increases; and (d) selecting pigmented or non-pigmented cells passaged in step (c) for the establishment of high-purity RPE-like culture.SELECTED DRAWING: None