PREVENTING BLINDNESS WHILE YOU SLEEP
UBC RESEARCHERS HOPE THEIR NEW MEDICATED DROP WILL BE ONE IN THE EYE FOR GLAUCOMA.
Although effective drugs already exist for treating glaucoma — which is the number one cause of irreversible blindness in the world — the challenge lies in delivering them to where they’re needed. Medicated drops have a tendency to roll off the eye instead of being absorbed, and don’t always reach the back of the eye where the drug is needed to repair neurons and relieve pressure on the optic nerve, which can progress to glaucoma. And although cannabinoids like CBGA (cannabigerolic acid) are effective at relieving symptoms, they don’t easily dissolve in water — a barrier to their medicinal application. The team’s solution was to develop a hydrogel and fill it with thousands of nanoparticles containing CBGA. Applied at bedtime, the substance responds to blinking and conditions within the eye to mould itself into a lens-like coating. The nanoparticles slowly dissolve overnight and penetrate the cornea. The drops are now undergoing clinical testing by industry partner, InMed Pharmaceuticals, and the researchers are exploring if the hydrogel can be used to deliver drugs for other eye disorders, such as macular degeneration.
Researchers:
Vikram Yadav, associate professor of chemical and biological engineering, and biomedical engineering; Syed Haider Kamal, research associate
