The pain and discomfort of dry eye affects about 25 per cent of the population increasing to almost 80 per cent for adults over 70, with the vast majority suffering from chronic or severe dry eye.
Researchers at the University of Waterloo are exploring how nanotechnology can help improve quality of life for dry-eye sufferers by decreasing the frequency for eye drops. And a substantial investment from AmorChem means the teams will collaborate on delivering a marketable first product based on the new eye-drop platform technology derived from the work developed by Waterloo professors Frank Gu and Lyndon Jones as well as PhD candidate Shengyan (Sandy) Liu.
“AmorChem has joined forces with Gu in order to pursue the preclinical development of a first product delivered using this mucoadhesive nanoparticle technology. The choice of dry eye as an indication was driven by data which convinced us that delivering drugs using these nanoparticles offers advantages which could improve the treatment of this disease,” explains Inès Holzbaur, general partner at AmorChem, in a news release (pdf) posted on the AmorChem website.
The eye-drop platform technology looks and feels like a regular drop but contains nanoparticles that selectively stick to the ocular surface and slowly dispenses medication. One long-lasting drop per week ensures that users are receiving the correct amount of drugs, minimizes the number of applications required, and reduces side effects and potential toxicity.
The eye’s natural clearance mechanisms wash away more than 95 per cent of a standard eye drop within minutes of being placed on the surface of the eye. To account for this, pharmaceutical companies increase the strength of the drop’s active ingredients to achieve a therapeutic effect, which means patients overdose for a short period of time before the drop is washed away – increasing side effects and costs.
Other methods to address eye-drop issues have been relatively unsuccessful. Implants and drug-delivering contact lenses are expensive and uncomfortable while thicker, goopy drops blur vision and are only useful when users are sleeping. The new drops resolve these issues and could potentially cost less. They could also prevent hospitalization for severe infections when drops are typically required to be instilled every 20 to 30 minutes because the new platform could allow patients to instill the drops at home every few hours.
The nanotechnology developed by Gu and Jones also has probable applications beyond eye drops.
"This technology has the potential to improve the quality of life for those suffering from allergies, cystic fibrosis, Crohns disease, and other chronic diseases affecting mucus membranes,” says Gu. “We’re currently preparing for clinical trials and are confident this technology will be a game-changer for patients – saving them time, irritation, and toxic exposure."
Gu, from the department of chemical engineering, and Jones, of the School of Optometry, worked with Saeed Bagheri, technology transfer officer with WatCo, to take their invention from lab to market.
“WatCo helped facilitate patent and IP protection for our technology and negotiate a licence with a pharma venture capital company to move our invention forward, which are all critical steps in the commercialization process,” says Jones. “The services offered by WatCo and the strength of Waterloo’s IP policy make it much easier to create a commercially viable technology. WatCo made it very easy for us to move our invention forward and bring it to market.”