The American Health Assistance Foundation (AHAF), a nonprofit organization with a history of funding breakthrough research on age-related vision diseases, announced today that it has awarded 21 new grants totaling $2.1 million to scientists worldwide who are studying and macular degeneration. The two conditions are the leading causes of irreversible blindness in the world.
Retinal degenerative diseases are major causes of untreatable blindness, and novel approaches to treatment are being sought actively. Here we explored the activation of a unique protein, sigma 1 receptor (Sig1R), in the treatment of PRC loss because of its multifaceted role in cellular survival. We used Pde6βrd10 (rd10) mice, which harbor a mutation in…
Pharmacologists at LMU have developed gene-based agents for the treatment of congenital eye diseases. The first of these is now undergoing a phase-I clinical trial in color-blind patients at the University Medical Center in Tübingen. Is this approach translatable in principle to other visual disorders? Michalakis: About 200 genes have been identified which, when mutated,…
“For patients with neovascular age-related macular degeneration (nAMD), a major cause of visual impairment worldwide,[1] the advent of anti–vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) intravitreal injections has been an undeniable breakthrough. Anti-VEGF therapy allows for greater control of the exudative process, which can dramatically improve outcomes compared with observation alone.” “Achieving and maintaining a dry macula in the…
Kala Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Kala), a developer of innovative ophthalmic products based on its proprietary mucus-penetrating particle (MPP) technology, today announced positive top-line results from a Phase 2 clinical trial of KPI-121. KPI-121 achieved statistical significance for the primary sign endpoint of bulbar conjunctival hyperemia, and promising trends were observed for key symptom endpoints. “The achievement of…
Avalanche Biotechnologies, Inc. (AAVL) today announced the closing of the previously announced transaction with Annapurna Therapeutics. “The new management team is focused on applying our extensive clinical development expertise to advance the company’s gene therapy programs into the clinic. We intend on dosing our first patients for A1AT deficiency by the end of this year…
Retinol-Binding Protein 4 Induces Inflammation in Human Endothelial Cells by a NADPH Oxidase- and Nuclear Factor Kappa B-dependent and Retinol-Independent Mechanism Krysten M. Farjoa,#, Rafal A. Farjob, Stacey Halseya, Gennadiy Moiseyeva and Jian-xing Maa aDepartment of Physiology, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma beyecro LLC, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma ABSTRACT Serum retinol-binding protein…