A breakthrough by researchers at the University of Birmingham has brought them a step closer to developing a revolutionary treatment for age-related macular degeneration (AMD).
AMD is a disease that blurs the sharp, central vision you need for ’straight-ahead’ activities such as reading, sewing, driving, etc. AMD affects the macula, the part of the eye that allows you to see fine details. It is considered a leading cause of blindness in the developed world and its prevalence is increasing dramatically as the population ages. By 2020, about 200 million people worldwide are estimated to be afflicted with the condition.
Currently, AMD is treated with injection of sight-saving drugs directly into the eye which must be administered only by medical professionals. Scientists from the University of Birmingham’s Institute of Microbiology and Infection, led by biochemist Dr Felicity de Cogan, have invented a new method of delivery for these drugs as eye-drops. Last year, a research report published in Investigative Ophthalmology & Visual Science (IOVS) showed that these eye-drops provide the same therapeutic effect as the injected drug in rats.
The Birmingham scientists have taken this research a step further by investigating the effect of the eye-drops in the larger eyes of rabbits and pigs, which are more similar to human eyes. The new study, also published in IOVS, successfully demonstrates that the eye-drops can deliver a therapeutically effective amount of drugs to the retina of the subject.
The eyes-drops contain a cell-penetrating peptide that can deliver the drug to the retina (the back of the eye). The pending patents for these eye-drops are now owned by a US-based company, Macregen Inc. A team of Birmingham researchers is working with the company to develop a novel range of therapies for AMD and other eye diseases. They are also working on proof of concept studies to confirm the validity of the therapeutic approach. It is expected that, once these studies are completed, clinical trials could start as early as in spring 2019.
“From the outset, we realised that delivering drugs through eye-drops would mean that patients can administer their treatment themselves and this would be less costly, save time for patients and healthcare providers and reduce the potential complications that can arise from injections,” said Dr de Cogan. Professor Robert Scott, consultant ophthalmologist and honorary professor of ophthalmology at the University of Birmingham, added that “cell-penetrating peptides will drive the next generation of treatment for people with AMD. They will be transformative for patients who currently have to organise their lives around monthly clinic visits for uncomfortable intra-ocular injections, who will in the future have the convenience of self-administering their medical treatment.”
Keith Roizman, founder, executive chairman and chief technology officer of Macregen said, “The company’s prospective strategic partners and licensees are expected to make significant investments in laboratory proof of concept studies, the subsequent research and development programmes and clinical trials. We will also pursue the necessary and required regulatory programmes to make these eye-drops available to patients.”
