Injection Improves Vision in a Form of Childhood Blindness

(c) NIH

A new treatment for patients with a form of congenital retinal blindness has shown success in improving vision, according to results published today in Nature Medicine led by researchers at the Scheie Eye Institute  in the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania.

The blood test that could save sight

A new blood test is being developed at The Australian National University (ANU) that can detect patients at risk of dry age-related macular degeneration (AMD) and potentially save millions of people from going blind.

Detecting prions in eyes of patients with Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease

(c) NIH

Prions are abnormal forms of natural proteins. The misshapen proteins collect in brain tissue and cause cells to die, leaving sponge-like holes in the brain. Prion diseases include “mad cow” disease in cattle and Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD) in people. People can get CJD by eating infected beef, but most cases develop spontaneously. This rare disease, which affects about one in a million people, is untreatable and fatal.

A novel drug for treatment of diabetic retinopathy

(c) Centenary Institute, Sydney, Australia

Scientists at the Centenary Institute have developed a novel drug which could potentially be used to effectively treat patients with diabetic retinopathy.

Diabetic retinopathy often occurs in diabetic patients, even when their blood sugar levels are controlled. In diabetic retinopathy, the tiny blood vessels in the retina are damaged and can leak fluid or haemorrhage, often leading to vision loss.

Minimally invasive retinal detachment treatment offers patients better outcomes

(c) Mayo Clinic

A minimally invasive treatment for retinal detachment gives patients sharper vision, less distortion and reduced side-effects, according to the findings of a randomized controlled trial. The findings have been published in Ophthalmology, the journal of the American Academy of Ophthalmology.

Why screen time on digital devices such as computers and phones disrupt sleep?

(c) Salk Institute

For most, the time spent staring at screens—on computers, phones, iPads—constitutes many hours and can often disrupt sleep. Now, Salk Institute researchers have pinpointed how certain cells in the eye process ambient light and reset our internal clocks, the daily cycles of physiological processes known as the circadian rhythm. When these cells are exposed to artificial light late into the night, our internal clocks can get confused, resulting in a host of health issues.

LCA patients gain benefit from Spark Therapeutics' gene therapy treatment, Luxturna

(c) Mass Eye & Ear

With the approval of Spark Therapeutics' Luxturna for Leber's Congenital Amaurosis (LCA), eye institutions around the US have started offering the treatment to their patients. In recent days, we have heard of this treatment being offered for the first time after the approval in Massachusetts Eye and Ear in Boston, followed the same day by the Children's Hospital of Los Angeles. A few days later, Bascom Palmer Eye Institute completed its first case.

Retinal cells derived from Stem Cells help treat Age-related Macular Degeneration (AMD)

(c) UCSB

In the months before Douglas Waters’ surgery, his vision was poor and he couldn’t see anything out of his right eye due to severe age-related macular degeneration (AMD). He struggled to see things clearly, even when up close. After the surgery, his eyesight improved so much that he could read the newspaper and help his wife with gardening.

Regeneron's PANORAMA study for Eylea in Diabetic Retinopathy shows Promise

(c) PMLive

Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc. announced positive topline data from its Phase III PANORAMA clinical trial of Eylea (aflibercept) injection in moderately severe to severe non-proliferative diabetic retinopathy. Diabetic retinopathy, which affects about eight million people, is the result of microvascular damage to the blood vessels in the retina related to lack of blood sugar control in diabetic patients.

A Biomarker could predict response of intravitreal injections in Diabetic Macular Edema

(c) OMICS

Researchers at St. Michael’s Hospital have found an association with a biomarker from aqueous fluid in the eye that predicts which patients will respond best to current treatments for diabetic macular edema. Their findings suggest this biomarker may be not only a marker of disease severity and anatomic response but also a potential therapeutic target in DME, recognizing that in patients with DME, there is not always a direct correlation between anatomic and visual acuity response.

Muller cells a key cell in preventing age-related vision loss

(c) Duke

Duke researchers have pinpointed a new therapeutic target for macular degeneration. Clinical trials have shown that injection of human umbilical stem cells, or hUTC, into the retina helps preserve and restore vision in macular degeneration patients. However, the underlying mechanisms behind the therapy remain unknown. Their findings show that hUTC treatment preserves the function of a retinal cell called the Müller glia in rats with degenerative vision loss.

New Research demonstrates success with Gene Therapy for a form of Inherited Macular Degeneration

(c) UPenn News

Researchers from the University of Pennsylvania have developed a gene therapy that successfully treats a form of macular degeneration in a canine model. The work sets the stage for translating the findings into a human therapy for an inherited disease that results in a progressive loss of central vision and which is currently untreatable.

Clearside's CLS-TA achieves endpoints in Phase 3 PEACHTREE trial

(c) Retinal Physician

Clearside Biomedical, Inc. has announced positive topline results from its pivotal Phase 3 clinical trial of suprachoroidal CLS-TA in patients with macular edema associated with non-infectious uveitis.

NEI/NIH launch clinical trial to study AMD progression

(c) NEI / NIH

A new clinical study led by the National Eye Institute (NEI), part of the National Institutes of Health, will follow 500 people over five years to learn more about the natural history of early age-related macular degeneration (AMD). By using the latest technologies to visualize structures within the eye and measure their function, researchers hope to identify biomarkers of disease progression, well before it advances to late-stage disease and causes vision loss.

RG7716 improves visual acuity in subjects with Diabetic Macular Edema in a Phase 2 study

(c)Pharmacodia.com

Genentech announced results from the Phase II BOULEVARD study, which is evaluating subjects with vision loss from diabetic macular edema (DME), where treatment with intravitreal RG7716 was observed to be clinically meaningful and statistically significant in improvement of visual acuity gains compared with ranibizumab alone.

GenSight received MHRA approval for testing Gene Therapy + Device in Retinitis Pigmentosa. May test patients with dry AMD

(c) GenSight Biologics

GenSight Biologics, a biopharma company focused on discovering and developing innovative gene therapies for retinal neurodegenerative diseases and central nervous system disorders, announced UK Medicines and Healthcare Regulatory Agency (MHRA) acceptance of the Company’s Clinical Trial Application (CTA) to initiate the PIONEER Phase I/II study of GS030 in patients with Retinitis Pigmentosa (RP).

Artificial Intelligence can predict blood pressure, age and smoking status based on retinal image

(c) Paul Parker/SPL via Nature

Eyes are said to be the window to the soul — but researchers at Google see them as indicators of a person’s health. The technology giant is using deep learning to predict a person’s blood pressure, age and smoking status by analyzing a photograph of their retina. Google’s computers glean clues from the arrangement of blood vessels — and a preliminary study suggests that the machines can use this information to predict whether someone is at risk of an impending heart attack.