AMD Update 18: A New Approach to Fighting Retinal Degeneration

I just learned this afternoon, of a start-up company, MitoChem Therapeutics, which is apparently an outgrowth of the Vision Research program at the Ophthalmology department at the University of South Carolina. Two of their scientists, Drs. Rohrer and Beeson, have been looking into compounds that can provide “energy” to “reduced capacity” mitochondria in retinal cells that are possibly at the root of retinal degenerations in such diseases as retinitis pigmentosa and macular degeneration.

The Foundation Fighting Blindness is providing $2 million to the company to support their research. After screening a library of 50,000 drug compounds, they have apparently (Read more...)

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