Also in the News…
From a new treatment for geographic atrophy, to clocking POAG progression using epigenetic clocks, these are the news stories and studies that caught our attention this week…
Alun Evans | | News
Warren LeMay from Cullowhee, NC, United States, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons
New GA treatment. PulseSight Therapeutics, a clinical-stage biotech company, recently presented new data on its new geographic atrophy (GA) treatment, PS-611, at the EVER Congress 2024 held in Valencia, Spain. The company plans to submit a phase I clinical trial authorization (CTA) by the end of the year, followed by a phase II proof-of-concept trial by the end of 2027. Link
Diabetes-related Eye Disease Awareness Month. The US’ leading volunteer eye health organization, Prevent Blindness, has announced that November will be “Diabetes-related Eye Disease Awareness Month.” As part of the event, it will offer free resources to the public, including fact sheets and educational videos. Link
Biodegradable implant for glaucoma drug delivery. PolyActiva, a clinical-stage company aiming to provide long-term drug delivery options for glaucoma patients, has presented promising new clinical data from its phase II trial of PA5108 – a biodegradable drug-releasing implant. Link
Clocking POAG progression. Using epigenetic clocks to assess the biological age of 200 primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG) patients, a medRxiv study has found that accelerated epigenetic aging is significantly linked to faster POAG progression, with each additional year of biological age increasing the likelihood of rapid disease progression by 15 percent. Conducted by researchers from Bascom Palmer Eye Institute, University of Miami, and Duke Eye Center, Duke University, the findings support the potential of using epigenetic age as a biomarker for glaucoma and exploring treatments targeting age-related mechanisms to slow disease progression. Link
Retinal function and MS. A team from the University Hospital Zurich and University of Zurich used electroretinography (ERG) to assess retinal function in individuals with advanced multiple sclerosis (MS). Compared with controls, MS patients show delays in specific ERG responses, indicating retinal bipolar cell dysfunction. However, this does not vary significantly with disease severity, duration, or history of optic neuritis, limiting ERG’s utility as a biomarker for monitoring or predicting disease progression. Link
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