The new treatment is showing overwhelmingly positive results in these lab tests, raising hopes that the disease, which can currently only be treated with surgery, might soon be managed with simple drugs.
Cataract is characterized by clouding of the lens which develops over time and affects the quality of vision. It is caused by a disorganization of proteins in the lens that results in the formation of clumps of proteins that scatter light, reducing its transmission to the retina. Cataracts cause vision loss to blindness in millions of people around the world.
The study: the team of international scientists, led by Prof. Barbara Pierscionek, Associate Dean of Anglia Ruskin University (ARU) is conducting advanced optical tests on an oxysterol compound already suggested to hold promise as an anti-cataract drug. The oxysterol compound tested, precisely named “VP1-001” allows:
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improved refractive index profiles
– a key optical parameter needed to maintain high focusing ability – in 61% of lenses;
- a restored protein organization of the lens, which allows it to concentrate better;
- a reduction in lens opacity in 46% of cases.
The study thus provides confirmation of the positive effects of a compound, already proposed as an anti-cataract drug but never tested before on the lens. The treatment induces a remarkable improvement in optics, between eyes affected by the same type of cataract, and of which only one has been treated.
Research will continue to assess the compound’s effectiveness once morest different types of cataract, but the study illustrates a significant step forward in treating this extremely common condition with drugs rather than surgery.
