Also in the News…

From business acquisitions to UK firsts to the importance of physical exercise in reducing senile cataract risks, these are the studies that caught our attention this week…

EyeBio acquisition. Jeito Capital recently announced that its portfolio company, EyeBio, has been acquired by the pharmaceutical company, Merck & Co. EyeBio is the company behind the development of Restoret, the Wnt signaling pathway agonist that is due to enter a pivotal study for diabetic macular edema in the second half of 2024. Link

England’s first cornea transplant. Surgeons have performed the first artificial cornea transplant in England. The endothelial keratoplasty was undertaken by consultant ophthalmologist Thomas Poole and his colleague Hanbin Lee at Frimley Park Hospital, Camberley, Surrey. Link

New DED product. Bausch + Lomb has announced the launch of Blink NutriTears. The over-the-counter supplement – consisting of Vitamin D, curcumin, lutein, and zeaxanthin – is designed to target dry eye disease (DED) and has been shown to provide statistically significant relief for DED symptoms, according to the company. Link

Corneal edema risk. A person’s race (particularly if they are Hispanic, Asian, and North American native), their age, and whether or not they have diabetes all contribute towards a higher risk of post-cataract corneal edema (CE), according to an American Journal of Ophthalmology study. The authors recommend that further research be undertaken to better understand why CE disproportionately affects racial and ethnic minorities in the US. Link

No Fluoroquinolone link. Fluoroquinolone – the antibiotic treatment often used for genitourinary infections – causes no substantial increase in either retinal detachment or uveitis, according to a new JAMA Ophthalmology study. Though an association between the treatment and these risks cannot be completely ruled out, the findings – based on an extensive cohort of nearly 3.5m adults who were prescribed either fluoroquinolone or comparator antibiotic, cephalosporin, between 1997 and 2019 – suggest that the potential risk was of limited clinical importance. Link

Cataracts and keeping fit. Examining data obtained from the UK Biobank cohort – consisting of medical information from 400,000 individuals aged 40-69 – researchers from Wenzhou Medical University, China, found that moderate-to-vigorous physical activity can reduce the risks of senile cataracts, highlighting the importance of preventative health strategies for at-risk patients. Link