[nfb-db] Fwd: news on blindness

[Janice Toothman]

Here is some preliminary research on mice to ameliorate RP and Age 
Related Macular Degeneration (ARMD). It might be something to look for 
in the future if it ever makes it into human trails.
Janice


-------- Original Message --------
Subject: 	news on blindness
Date: 	Tue, 14 Aug 2012 16:18:56 -0400
From: 	Kelli Stein <kelli.stein at gmail.com>
To: 	secretary at mwadb.org



 From Andrew, our MWADB president:

Please share with everyone.

Thanks

----------

Subject: Experimental Chemical Helps Blind Mice See


WEDNESDAY, July 25 (HealthDay News) -- A novel chemical temporarily
restored some vision to blind mice, and this success may eventually
lead to a treatment to help people with degenerative blindness see
again, according to a new study.

Those who could benefit include people with retinitis pigmentosa and
age-related macular degeneration (AMD). Retinitis pigmentosa is a
genetic disease that is the most common inherited form of blindness,
while AMD is the most common cause of acquired blindness in the
developed world.

In both diseases, light sensitive cells in the retina called rods and
cones die and leave the eye without functioning photoreceptors.

The mice used in this study had genetic mutations that made their rods
and cones die within months of birth. Injections of the chemical AAQ
into the eyes of the blind mice temporarily restored their light
sensitivity, according to the study published in the July 26 issue of
the journal Neuron.

AAQ makes the remaining, normally "blind" cells in the retina
sensitive to light, lead researcher Richard Kramer, a professor of
molecular and cell biology at the University of California, Berkeley,
explained in a university news release.

This approach "offers real hope to patients with retinal
degeneration," study co-author Dr. Russell Van Gelder, chair of the
ophthalmology department at the University of Washington in Seattle,
said in the news release.

"We still need to show that these compounds are safe and will work in
people the way they work in mice, but these results demonstrate that
this class of compound restores light sensitivity to retinas blind
from genetic disease," he added.

The researchers noted that the chemical eventually wears off, which
may make it a safer alternative to other experimental methods for
restoring sight, such as gene or stem cell therapies, which
permanently change the retina. Chemical treatment is also less
invasive than implanting light-sensitive chips in the eye, the
researchers said.

"The advantage of this approach is that it is a simple chemical, which
means that you can change the dosage, you can use it in combination
with other therapies, or you can discontinue the therapy if you don't
like the results. As improved chemicals become available, you could
offer them to patients. You can't do that when you surgically implant
a chip or after you genetically modify somebody," Kramer explained.

However, experts note that while studies involving animals can be
useful, they frequently fail to produce similar results in humans.

The research was supported by the U.S. National Institutes of Health's
National Eye Institute and Research to Prevent Blindness.



Read more: 
http://www.philly.com/philly/health/HealthDay667041_20120725_Experimental_Chemical_Helps_Blind_Mice_See.html?cmpid=138896494#ixzz23YO1pitj

------------------


--
Andrew Cohen




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