Grant: Project Grant

Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is a common eye condition and can cause loss of vision among the elderly (i.e., people 50 and older). It causes damage to the back of the eye, in an area called the macula, a small spot near the center of the retina and the part of the eye needed for sharp, central vision. AMD can occur in two different forms. In some people, the "dry" form of AMD advances so slowly that vision loss does not occur for a long time. There is no approved treatment for dry AMD in Canada and our research focuses on a new drug to stop the dry form of AMD from developing. The second form of AMD is the "wet" form and in patients with wet AMD, vision deteriorates quickly and vision loss is permanent. Current drugs can only stop the vision loss from progressing. For wet AMD, the current strategy is to block a chemical called "vascular endothelial growth factor" (VEGF) by an injection into the eyeball which may cause side effects and repeated injections are needed for the patient's lifetime. Our research will identify new treatments for wet AMD that can be used in place of or combined with anti-VEGF drugs. We will target an important enzyme called Granzyme B, which accumulates in the eye tissues with aging. We showed that it causes the outer blood-retinal barrier to break down and disintegrate. Our new drug will stop this disintegration of the outer retinal tissues, stopping AMD from developing at the outset. Our team is a world-class group of scientists and experts in eye diseases and enzymes such as Granzyme B. Our project will provide exciting new information on this previously unknown eye enzyme. Our goal is to develop a first-in-class medication to stop AMD, a blinding eye disease of the elderly, from developing.