Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) and diabetic retinopathy (DR) affect approximately 30 million people in the developed world and the market potential is in excess of $1.0 billion
Oxford BioMedica and the Institute of Ophthalmology in London announced in May 2002 a research and development collaboration to develop novel products to treat the most common causes of blindness in the developed world.
Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) and diabetic retinopathy (DR) affect approximately 30 million people in the developed world and the market potential is in excess of $1.0 billion.
In both AMD and DR, blindness is caused by the defective formation of new blood vessels in the retina.
In AMD, new blood vessels extend from the inner retina beyond the inner limiting membrane which leads to haemorrhaging and distortion of the specific area of the retinal surface responsible for sharp, central vision.
In DR, a similar process occurs however, the new blood vessels appear on the vitreous surface of the retina causing excessive accumulation of fluid or 'oedema', which blurs vision and causes retinal haemorrhage.
Currently, the only available treatments for AMD and DR are limited and tend to only slow the diseases' progression.
Over the past year, BioMedica has been evaluating its lentiviral gene transfer platform and its gene switch technology, based on the Hypoxia Response Element (HRE), for use in the treatment of eye diseases.
LentiVector has been shown to be uniquely suited for delivering genes to the eye and the HRE is ideally suited to control genes involved in formation of blood vessels - the angiogenic response - the underlying cause of AMD and DR.
The collaboration with the Institute of Ophthalmology is designed to develop new gene-based products for treatment of AMD and DR that act by blocking inappropriate blood vessel growth.
If successful the products could move into clinical development within a year.
The Institute of Ophthalmology has the strongest multidisciplinary scientific resource of any such eye centre in the world.
The Institute's world leading programme of research into the mechanisms and treatment of eye disease draws on the tremendous clinical resource of Moorfields Eye Hospital and with this provides an unparalleled focus for the rapid development of new treatments.
The Institute of Ophthalmology was recently awarded UK government funding under the Wellcome Trust sponsored JIF mechanism to create a centre for the identification and development of novel treatment strategies for ocular disease.
Commenting on the collaboration BioMedica's chief executive, Alan Kingsman said: "We are delighted to be working alongside one of the world's leading ophthalmology centres.
"This programme has been in development for some time now, and has been extremely successful.
"It is now ready to move forward with the development of novel products that address this very large market".
AMD is now one of the major debilitating diseases of the ageing population.
About one in six people between the ages of 55 and 64 will develop AMD while one in four between 64 and 74 will be affected.
One in three over the age of 75 will be affected.
Each year 1.2 million of the estimated 12 million Americans with macular degeneration will suffer severe central vision loss.
Each year 200,000 individuals will lose all central vision in one or both eyes due to AMD.
DR is the commonest cause of visual loss in people of working age and the predominant cause of economic loss due to visual impairment.
Over 40% of people with insulin dependant and 20% of people with non-insulin dependent diabetes eventually succumb to diabetic retinopathy.
In the US alone, where an estimated 16 million people have either type I or II diabetes, about 600,000 have retinopathy.
Direct and indirect costs of diabetic retinopathy totalled more than $2.8 billion in 1996.
2% of insulin dependent diabetics are totally blind, many of them in the younger age group.
