A Degradable Sustained-Release Drug Delivery System for Bleb-Forming Glaucoma Surgery.

Fibrosis of the filtering bleb is one of the main causes of failure after bleb-forming glaucoma surgery. Intraoperative application of mitomycin C (MMC) is the current gold standard to reduce the fibrotic response. However, MMC is cytotoxic and one-time application is often insufficient.

The Influence of Design Modifications and Microstructured Surface Topographies on Bleb Survival after Glaucoma Tube Shunt Implantation.

Lowering intraocular pressure (IOP) by placement of a glaucoma shunt is an effective treatment for glaucoma. However, fibrosis of the outflow site can hamper surgical outcome. In this study, the antifibrotic effect of adding an endplate (with or without microstructured surface topographies) to a microshunt made of poly(styrene-block-isobutylene-block-styrene) is investigated.

Wound Healing Response After Bleb-Forming Glaucoma Surgery With a SIBS Microshunt in Rabbits.

Purpose: The PreserFlo MicroShunt is an innovative implant for the surgical treatment of glaucoma. Although usually effective, surgeries can still fail due to fibrosis. This study was conducted to gain insight into the histological aspects of the fibrotic response and find potential targets to reduce postoperative fibrosis.

Animal models and drug candidates for use in glaucoma filtration surgery: A systematic review.

Glaucoma, a degenerative disease of the optic nerve, is the leading cause of irreversible blindness worldwide. Currently, there is no curative treatment. The only proven treatment is lowering intraocular pressure (IOP), the most important risk factor.

Repeatability, reproducibility, and agreement of three tonometers for measuring intraocular pressure in rabbits.

The aim of this study was to evaluate repeatability, reproducibility, and agreement of three commonly used tonometers in animal research (TonoLab, TonoVet, and TonoPEN AVIA) in a cohort of 24 rabbits. Additionally, the impact of sedation on IOP was investigated in 21 New Zealand White rabbits with the TonoVet tonometer. Repeatability was determined using the coefficient of variation (CoV) for two observers.

DNA damage in embryonic neural stem cell determines FTLDs' fate via early-stage neuronal necrosis.

The early-stage pathologies of frontotemporal lobal degeneration (FTLD) remain largely unknown. In VCP-KI mice carrying VCP gene mutation linked to FTLD, insufficient DNA damage repair in neural stem/progenitor cells (NSCs) activated DNA-PK and CDK1 that disabled MCM3 essential for the G1/S cell cycle transition. Abnormal neural exit produced neurons carrying over unrepaired DNA damage and induced early-stage transcriptional repression-induced atypical cell death (TRIAD) necrosis accompanied by the specific markers pSer46-MARCKS and YAP.

Pharmacokinetics and efficacy of a ketorolac-loaded ocular coil in New Zealand white rabbits.

Eye drops are considered standard practice for the delivery of ocular drugs. However, low patient compliance and low drug levels compromise its effectiveness. Our group developed a ketorolac-loaded ocular coil for sustained drug delivery up to 28 days.

Safety and Comfort of an Innovative Drug Delivery Device in Healthy Subjects.

Purpose: The aim of this study was to investigate safety and comfort of two versions of a placebo-microsphere filled ocular coil (straight and curved) in healthy subjects.

Methods: The study was a single-center intervention study. One ocular coil was placed in the inferior conjunctival fornix for the intended duration of 28 days.

Pipeline for the removal of hardware related artifacts and background noise for Raman spectroscopy.

Raman spectroscopy is a real-time, non-contact, and non-destructive technique able to obtain information about the composition of materials, chemicals, and mixtures. It uses the energy transfer properties of molecules to detect the composition of matter. Raman spectroscopy is mainly used in the chemical field because background fluorescence and instrumental noise affect biological ( and ) measurements.

Design of the ocular coil, a new device for non-invasive drug delivery.

Eye drops and ointments are the most prescribed methods for ocular drug delivery. However, due to low drug bioavailability, rapid drug elimination, and low patient compliance there is a need for improved ophthalmic drug delivery systems. This study provides insights into the design of a new drug delivery device that consists of an ocular coil filled with ketorolac loaded PMMA microspheres.

Validation of Computerized Quantification of Ocular Redness.

Purpose: To show feasibility of computerized techniques for ocular redness quantification in clinical studies, and to propose an automatic, objective method.

Methods: Software for quantification of redness of the bulbar conjunctiva was developed. It provides an interface for manual and automatic sclera segmentation along with automated alignment of region of interest to enable estimation of changes in redness.

and datasets of topically applied ketorolac tromethamine in aqueous humor using Raman spectroscopy.

This article includes datasets acquired by Raman spectroscopy from and ocular samples collected from the dataset from Bertens and Zhang  , "Confocal Raman spectroscopy: Evaluation of a non-invasive technique for the detection of topically applied ketorolac tromethamine and " (Bertens and Zhang, ). Detection of ketorolac tromethamine in pig eyes was performed and rabbit eyes . Extracted aqueous humor samples from pig and rabbit eyes were measured using a cuvette.

Confocal Raman spectroscopy: Evaluation of a non-invasive technique for the detection of topically applied ketorolac tromethamine in vitro and in vivo.

Current information about the pharmacokinetics of an ocular drug can only be achieved by invasive sampling. However, confocal Raman spectroscopy bears the potential to quantify drug concentrations non-invasively. In this project, we evaluated the detection and quantification of ocular ketorolac tromethamine levels with confocal Raman spectroscopy after topical administration.

Topical drug delivery devices: A review.

For the treatment and prevention of ocular diseases, most patients are treated with conventional drug delivery formulations such as eye drops or ointments. However, eye drops and ointments suffer from low patient compliance and low effective drug concentration at the target site. Therefore, new medical devices are being explored to improve drug delivery to the eye.

FcRγ-chain ITAM signaling is critically required for cross-presentation of soluble antibody-antigen complexes by dendritic cells.

The uptake of Ag-Ab immune complexes (IC) after the ligation of activating FcγR on dendritic cells (DC) leads to 100 times more efficient Ag presentation than the uptake of free Ags. FcγRs were reported to facilitate IC uptake and simultaneously induce cellular activation that drives DC maturation and mediates efficient T cell activation. Activating FcγRs elicit intracellular signaling via the ITAM domain of the associated FcRγ-chain.