Development of an opticin-based anti-angiogenic therapeutic for the treatment of ocular disease.

有许多致盲的情况，其中异常血管生长到玻璃体液中，玻璃体液是一种占据眼睛中部的正常透明的，像玻璃体一样的结构;这些包括早产儿视网膜病变（影响早产儿）和增殖性糖尿病视网膜病变（糖尿病视力丧失的常见原因）。目前，这些疾病是用激光治疗，破坏大部分视网膜;这牺牲了侧视力，目的是防止完全失明和保留视力的中心部分。激光治疗是在大约50年前引入的，从那时起，这些疾病的治疗方法没有发生实质性的变化。考虑到激光治疗的副作用，而且它并不总是有效，需要更好的治疗方法。我们在玻璃体液中发现了一种分子，我们称之为opticin，最近我们发现opticin抑制血管生长。在血管长入玻璃体的疾病中，没有足够的视神经肽来阻止血管生长。然而，我们现在有证据表明，通过向玻璃体中注射比正常情况下更多的视神经肽，我们可以阻止血管生长，从而治疗这些疾病。玻璃体注射现在是其他眼部疾病的常规程序，注射opticin可以取代激光治疗，或者可以与激光治疗结合使用。该项目将建立在我们目前拥有的数据基础上，以证实开发opticin作为这些条件的治疗方法的情况。研究将包括进一步的工作，以确定如何有效的opticin将作为一种治疗，一些初步的安全性研究，调查多久opticin停留在玻璃体液后，它被注射，和一些进一步的工作，以分析opticin如何在分子水平上工作。这项临床前研究将使我们能够确定opticin是否应该继续作为一种治疗方法进行开发，如果可以，将有助于未来的研究，因为它将走向临床试验。此外，它还将提供吸引商业合作伙伴所需的数据，我们可以与他们一起将opticin开发成一种令人兴奋的新视力保护治疗方法。

There are a number of blinding conditions where abnormal blood vessels grow into the vitreous humour, a normally transparent, jelly-like structure that occupies the middle of the eye; these include retinopathy of prematurity (affecting preterm babies) and proliferative diabetic retinopathy (a common cause of sight loss in diabetes). Currently these conditions are treated with laser therapy that destroys large parts of the retina; this sacrifices side-vision with the aim of preventing complete sight loss and preserving the central part of the vision. Laser treatment was introduced about 50 years ago and the treatment for these conditions has not changed substantially since then. Given the side-effects of laser treatment, and that it does not always work, better treatments are need. We discovered a molecule in the vitreous humour that we called opticin, and more recently we found that opticin inhibits blood vessel growth. In diseases where blood vessels grow into the vitreous there is not enough opticin present to stop the blood vessels growing. However, we now have evidence that by injecting more opticin into the vitreous than is normally present, we can prevent the blood vessel growth and thereby treat these diseases. Injections into the vitreous are now routine procedures for other eye conditions and injecting opticin could replace laser treatment, or could be used in conjunction with laser therapy. This project will build upon the data we have at present to substantiate the case for developing opticin as a treatment for these conditions. Studies will include further work to determine how effective opticin will be as a treatment, some initial safety studies, investigations into how long the opticin stays in the vitreous humour after it is injected, and some further work to analyse how opticin works at a molecular level. This preclinical research will allow us to detemine whether opticin should continue to be developed as a treatment, and if it does, will facilitate future research as it moves towards clinical trials. In addition, it will provide the data needed to attract a commercial partner with whom we can develop opticin into an exciting, new sight-saving treatment.