Blindness News and Research

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First-in-human clinical trial to test safety, efficacy of gene therapy for Alzheimer's disease

Researchers at University of California San Diego School of Medicine have launched a first-in-human Phase I clinical trial to assess the safety and efficacy of a gene therapy to deliver a key protein into the brains of persons with Alzheimer's disease (AD) or Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI), a condition that often precedes full-blown dementia.

From UC San Diego 19 Feb 2021

Researchers identify potential new treatments for blindness

Vision loss associated with inherited genetic disease or aging is predicted to affect as many as 16 million people in the world.

27 Nov 2020

Study reveals process for regenerating neurons in the eye and brain

The death of neurons, whether in the brain or the eye, can result in a number of human neurodegenerative disorders, from blindness to Parkinson's disease.

6 Oct 2020

New insight into how people with retinal degenerative disease can maintain night vision

New insight on how people with retinal degenerative disease can maintain their night vision for a relatively long period of time has been published today in the open-access eLife journal.

23 Sep 2020

Researchers develop new gene therapy for congenital blindness

Retinitis pigmentosa is the most prevalent form of congenital blindness. Using a retinitis pigmentosa mouse model, researchers from Ludwig-Maximilians Universitaet (LMU) in Munich have now shown that targeted activation of genes of similar function can compensate for the primary defect.

3 Sep 2020

Elevated levels of heart failure marker increase risk for diabetes-related complications

Healthy people - especially women - with elevated levels of the heart failure marker NT-proBNP have a lower risk of developing type 2 diabetes.

19 Aug 2020

Gene therapy to the inner retina prevents blindness in Cln3-deficient mice

Gene therapy to the inner retina prevented blindness in a mouse model of the neuro-degenerative disorder CLN3 Batten disease.

11 Aug 2020

Boosting metabolic resources in the brain could be a way to slow neurodegeneration

Researchers at Vanderbilt University Medical Center have shown for the first time that when one optic nerve in the eye is damaged, as in glaucoma, the opposite optic nerve comes to the rescue by sharing its metabolic energy.

From Vanderbilt University 22 Jul 2020

A new method to fortify shellfish for tackling human nutrient defiiciencies

Cambridge scientists have developed a new way to fortify shellfish to tackle human nutrient deficiencies which cause severe health problems across the world. The team is now working with major seafood manufacturers to further test their microencapsulation technology, or "Vitamin Bullets".

20 Jul 2020

A new approach to combat drug resistance in aggressive age-related macular degeneration

An international team of researchers led by Baylor College of Medicine and Houston Methodist has discovered a strategy that can potentially address a major challenge to the current treatment for choroidal neovascularization (CNV), an aggressive form of age-related macular degeneration, the leading cause of irreversible blindness in the elderly.

17 Jul 2020

Study: Specific mechanism of Cyclocarya paliurus shows promise for treating type 2 diabetes

Type 1 diabetes mellitus and type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) are the two main types of diabetes, while T2DM accounts for 90%-95% of those with diabetes.

14 Jul 2020

New approach spurs production of antibiotic or antiparasitic compounds in bacteria

Researchers have developed a method to spur the production of new antibiotic or antiparasitic compounds hiding in the genomes of actinobacteria, which are the source of drugs such as actinomycin and streptomycin and are known to harbor other untapped chemical riches.

26 Jun 2020

Astrocytes may play a key role in neurodegenerative disorders

According to a new research performed in rodents, cells that usually nurture nerves may actually destroy them following a brain injury.

From New York University (NYU) 24 Jun 2020

Human stem cell models reveal neurodegeneration in glaucoma

Glaucoma, a serious eye condition responsible for causing vision loss, affects over three million Americans.

12 Jun 2020

Researchers demonstrate a potential solution for treating corneal scarring

Infection, inflammation, trauma, disease, contact lenses - all of these and more can lead to corneal scarring, which according to the World Health Organization is a leading cause of blindness worldwide.

7 May 2020

Newly discovered gene variants offer therapeutic possibilities for glaucoma

An international team of researchers, headed by scientists from Stanford University and the University of Helsinki, has discovered unique changes in a gene, known as ANGPTL7, that reduce intraocular pressure and considerably decrease the risk of glaucoma.

6 May 2020

New canine study can benefit diagnostics and treatment of retinitis pigmentosa

A study performed on canines at the University of Helsinki characterizes a gene variant in the regulatory region of the retina that causes abnormal functioning of retinal genes and, ultimately, leads to loss of vision in dogs.

11 Mar 2020