Moxifloxacin-loaded acrylic intraocular lenses: In vitro and in vivo performance.

Purpose: To assess the possibility of using acrylic intraocular lenses (IOLs) to ensure controlled and sustained release of moxifloxacin, an antibiotic commonly used for endophthalmitis prophylaxis after cataract surgery.

Setting: Academic, industrial, and clinical partners from Portugal, Belgium, Iceland, and the United States.

Design: Experimental study.

Surface modification of an intraocular lens material by plasma-assisted grafting with 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate (HEMA), for controlled release of moxifloxacin.

Endophthalmitis, an inflammation of the eye due to perioperative infection, may occur after cataract surgery. Intraocular lenses (IOLs) loaded with an antibiotic have been proposed asan alternative to the conventional postoperative endophthalmitis prophylaxis, since the antibiotic is delivered directly to the target site. In this work, an IOL-based antibiotic releasing system was prepared from a copolymer used in the production of IOLs and a fluoroquinolone used in endophthalmitis prophylaxis (moxifloxacin, MFX).

Chitosan/alginate based multilayers to control drug release from ophthalmic lens.

In this study we investigated the possibility of using layer-by-layer deposition, based in natural polymers (chitosan and alginate), to control the release of different ophthalmic drugs from three types of lens materials: a silicone-based hydrogel recently proposed by our group as drug releasing soft contact lens (SCL) material and two commercially available materials: CI26Y for intraocular lens (IOLs) and Definitive 50 for SCLs. The optimised coating, consisting in one double layer of (alginate - CaCl2)/(chitosan+glyoxal) topped with a final alginate-CaCl2 layer to avoid chitosan degradation by tear fluid proteins, proved to have excellent features to control the release of the anti-inflammatory, diclofenac, while keeping or improving the physical properties of the lenses. The coating leads to a controlled release of diclofenac from SCL and IOL materials for, at least, one week.

Double-C loop platform in combination with hydrophobic and hydrophilic acrylic intraocular lens materials.

Purpose: To analyze the behavior of a new double-C-loop quadripod symmetrical intraocular lens (IOL) platform combined with a hydrophilic lens material and a new hydrophobic glistening-free acrylic lens material, Ankoris and Podeye, respectively, in silico (computer simulation), in vitro (laboratory investigation), and in vivo (rabbit model).

Setting: John A. Moran Eye Center, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah, USA, and Physiol S.

RGD surface functionalization of the hydrophilic acrylic intraocular lens material to control posterior capsular opacification.

Posterior Capsular Opacification (PCO) is the capsule fibrosis developed on implanted IntraOcular Lens (IOL) by the de-differentiation of Lens Epithelial Cells (LECs) undergoing Epithelial Mesenchymal Transition (EMT). Literature has shown that the incidence of PCO is multifactorial including the patient's age or disease, surgical technique, and IOL design and material. Reports comparing hydrophilic and hydrophobic acrylic IOLs have shown that the former has more severe PCO.

Evaluation of a class of polyurethane materials for intraocular lens manufacturing.

Ophthalmic lenses are medical devices with considerable requirements in terms of optical, biomechanical and biological performance. There is limited number of materials used for their manufacturing, comprising mainly silicones and poly(meth)acrylates. This series of publications aims at investigating the applicability of thermoplastic polyurethane elastomers (TPU) for the manufacturing of ophthalmic lenses and examining the properties of the respective devices.

Biointerface multiparametric study of intraocular lens acrylic materials.

Purpose: To compare hydrophilic and hydrophobic acrylic materials designed for intraocular lenses in a multiparametric investigation in a liquid environment to highlight their properties in terms of adhesion forces, lens epithelial cell (LEC) adhesion, and tissue response as indicators of the risk for posterior capsule opacification (PCO) development.

Setting: University of Liège, Liège, Belgium.

Design: Experimental study.

Biomechanical and optical properties of 2 new hydrophobic platforms for intraocular lenses.

Purpose: To compare the biomechanical and optical properties of 2 new hydrophobic platforms and a series of commercially available foldable intraocular lenses (IOLs).

Setting: Center for Education and Research on Macromolecules, University of Liège, Liège, Belgium.

Design: Experimental study.

Assessment of new-generation glistening-free hydrophobic acrylic intraocular lens material.

Purpose: To determine the hydrophobic, antiglistening, and bioadhesiveness properties of a new polymer, GF raw material, and to determine the suitability of this material for use in intraocular lenses (IOLs).

Setting: University of Liege, Liege, Belgium.

Design: Experimental study.

Hydrogel nanocomposites: a potential UV/blue light filtering material for ophthalmic lenses.

Poly(2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate-co-methyl methacrylate) (poly(HEMA-co-MMA)) and ZnS hydrogel nanocomposites were prepared and characterized. The chemical composition of the inorganic nanoparticles was confirmed by X-ray diffraction, and the homogeneity of their distribution within the hydrogel was assessed by transmission electron microscopy. The influence of the content of ZnS nanoparticles on the optical performances of the nanocomposites was investigated by UV-Vis spectroscopy.

Antibacterial activity of poly(vinyl alcohol)-b-poly(acrylonitrile) based micelles loaded with silver nanoparticles.

A new amphiphilic poly(vinyl alcohol)-b-poly(acrylonitrile) (PVOH-b-PAN) copolymer obtained by selective hydrolysis of well-defined poly(vinyl acetate)-b-poly(acrylonitrile) copolymer synthesized by cobalt mediated radical polymerization was used for the preparation of PVOH-b-PAN based micelles with embedded silver nanoparticles. The successful formation of silver loaded micelles has been confirmed by UV-vis, DLS and TEM analysis and their antibacterial activity against Escherichia coli (E. coli), Staphylococcus aureus (S.

Imparting antifouling properties of poly(2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate) hydrogels by grafting poly(oligoethylene glycol methyl ether acrylate).

The antifouling properties of poly(2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate- co-methyl methacrylate) hydrogels were improved by the surface grafting of a brush of poly(oligoethylene glycol methyl ether acrylate) [poly(OEGA)]. The atom-transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) of OEGA (degree of polymerization = 8) was initiated from the preactivated surface of the hydrogel under mild conditions, thus in water at 25 degrees C. The catalytic system was optimized on the basis of two ligands [1,1,4,7,10,10-hexamethyl-triethylenetetramine (HMTETA) or tris[2-(dimethylamino)ethyl]amine (Me6TREN)] and two copper salts (CuIBr or CuICl).

Improved performances of intraocular lenses by poly(ethylene glycol) chemical coatings.

Cataract surgery is a routine ophthalmologic intervention resulting in replacement of the opacified natural lens by a polymeric intraocular lens (IOL). A main postoperative complication, as a result of protein adsorption and lens epithelial cell (LEC) adhesion, growth, and proliferation, is the secondary cataract, referred to as posterior capsular opacification (PCO). To avoid PCO formation, a poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) chemical coating was created on the surface of hydrogel IOLs.