Birmingham scientists go one step further in developing potential topical AMD treatment

Scientists from the University of Birmingham have taken a further step in their research, developing an eye drop that could be a paradigm shift in the treatment arsenal for age-related macular degeneration (AMD).

AMD is a hugely prevalent condition that commonly causes blindness and increases in incidence with age. Currently, treated with a series of intraocular injections, administered by healthcare professionals, a potential topical treatment could have an immense impact on the treatment options for this growing patient population.

The original research, let by biochemist Dr Felicity de Cogan, University of Birmingham’s Institute of Microbiology and Infection, published in Investigative Ophthalmology & Visual Science (IOVS), demonstrated that the eye drops had a similar therapeutic effect in rats as injected drugs. This latest advancement has seen the researchers look at the effect of the eye drops in the larger eyes of rabbits and pigs, which are closer to human eyes. The latest studies, which have also been published in IOVS, have also shown therapeutic efficacy of the eye drops in larger mammalian eyes.

This novel topical AMD treatment features a cell-penetrating peptide that can deliver the drug to the retina at its base. The patent-pending for which is now owned by US company Macregen. Researchers from Birmingham university are working with the company to formulate a range of unique therapies for AMD and other eye diseases.

Proof-of-concept studies are being accelerated by the combined team to confirm the validity of this therapeutic approach. Clinical trials are anticipated to begin imminently once these validation studies have been completed and could potentially start as early as spring 2019.

“Macregen and the company’s prospective strategic partners and licensees are expected to make significant investments in laboratory proof of concept studies, the subsequent R&D programmes and clinical trials,” said Keith Roizman, founder, executive chairman, and chief technology officer of Macregen. “We will also pursue the necessary and required regulatory programmes to make these eye drops available to patients.”

“For several years, our team has focused on the challenge of delivering drugs to the back of the eye. 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,” commented de Cogan. “Now that we have shown that the eye drops work in the larger mammalian eye, and we welcome the commercial investment and expertise from Macregen so we can deliver a structured R&D programme that should bring concrete benefits to people with AMD and other eye diseases.”

Professor Robert Scott, consultant ophthalmologist and honorary professor of Ophthalmology at University of Birmingham added: “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 intraocular injections, who will in the future have the convenience of self-administering their medical treatment.”