A new therapeutic approach to leverage vision restoration in glaucoma

Overview

Project Summary

Glaucoma, a leading cause of global irreversible blindness, is a progressive chronic retinal neurodegenerative disease and the main risk factor for glaucoma development is elevated intraocular pressure. Lowering of intraocular pressure is currently the only proven treatment strategy for glaucoma, but vision loss progresses despite successful control of intraocular pressure, which indicates that other factors are implicated in the disease. It is characterized by retinal ganglion cell loss and damage of the optic nerve (formed by retinal ganglion cell axons), which leads to a disruption in the anatomical connectivity between eye and brain along the visual pathway. Thus, there is an urgent need to rethink the therapeutic paradigm of glaucoma to halt disease progression. This project aims to be a step forward for developing a new therapeutic strategy that confer neuroprotection to the remaining retinal ganglion cells and promote a regenerative environment for the axons already lost.

Main Goals

Retinal ganglion cell loss and degeneration that leads to permanent vision loss is attributed to an initial injury to optic nerve resulting in a permanent loss of axonal connections with brain specific targets. This proposal will evaluate the potential of adenosine A3 receptor activation in the promotion of long-distance regeneration of retinal ganglion cell axons and correct reintegration in retino-recipient brain targets, aiming vision restoration. 

Project Details