Posted on 11th May, 2023 at 5:57:08 AM
Presbyopia is a condition which affects all of us as we approach our mid 40’s or slightly later. Suddenly you need reading glasses, whereas you have always enjoyed the perfect sight, or even if you have needed spectacles or contact lenses, you now need bifocal or progressive classes. It is a normal part of hitting middle age. But now there may be a non-glasses, non-contact lenses, non-surgical solution in sight. In a major development, Encore Vision — an ophthalmic therapeutic company established for the treatment of presbyopia — has carried out positive phase 2 clinical trials of EV06, an ophthalmic solution for preventing the development of or even reversing presbyopia.
Company president and chief executive officer Bill Burns said that EV06 is a prodrug that metabolizes into lipoid acid and choline. These two naturally occurring substances may be able to treat the causes of this refractive error where one finds it difficult to read close objects.
Encore Vision researchers found that too much formation of disulphide bonds in the lens of the human eye leads to the loss of lens flexibility. When these bonds form, the lens becomes stiff creating compromised accommodations. After EV06 is administered, the lens fibre cells enzymes reduce lipoic acid to form dihydrolipoic acid that restores the microfluidics of the lens and reduces disulphide bonds.
Burns also said that the EV06 improved near vision (in the non-dominant eye), distant vision (dominant eye) and bilateral vision over time. 22% of patients in the EV06 arm gained 3 lines and 12% gained 4 lines respectively.
Researchers also found that none of the patients in the EV06 arm lost any distant vision and 16% didn't have any change in distant vision. The company will commence Phase IIb dose-ranging study during the first quarter of 2017 and Phase III studies in the second quarter of 2018.
Recognising the promise of this treatment modality, Novartis (a big pharmaceutical conglomerate) has recently agreed to buy Encore Vision.
