New Vaccine to Prevent Age-Related Blindness

Researchers from Trinity College London have developed a new vaccine that promises to prevent age-related blindness among the elderly, according to a new study published in the journal Nature Medicine.

Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is one of the major causes of blindness among the elderly and affects more than a quarter of the population over 60 years of age.

The number is expected to treble in the next 25 years but researchers from Trinity College London could have a potential cure on hand after developing a chemical, known as IL-18 that prevents the worsening of AMD also known as "wet" form of the disease.

Dr Sarah Doyle, who worked on the study, said that injecting IL-18 into the retina could prevent the worsening of the disease. Our results directly suggest that controlling or indeed augmenting the levels of IL-18 in the retinas of patients with dry AMD could prevent the wet form of the disease", she said.

Source: Medindia