• Home
  • Health & Wellness
  • Disclaimer
    • Terms of Use
    • Privacy Policy
    • DMCA Notice
  • Home
  • Health & Wellness
  • Disclaimer
    • Terms of Use
    • Privacy Policy
    • DMCA Notice
24/7 Health News
No Result
View All Result
Home Article

Cataracts: we’re working on eye drops to treat them so people don’t need surgery

August 24, 2022
in Article
Cataracts: we’re working on eye drops to treat them so people don’t need surgery

Olena Yakobchuk/Shutterstock

Many years ago, I began my PhD with the firm resolve of finding a cure for cataracts – not in several years or decades, but within the duration of my PhD. Such was my enthusiasm and naivety. Decades later, though, that dream looks as if it might come true.

Cataracts are the result of a buildup of broken protein fragments within the eye lens. This buildup and clumping together of protein fragments severely reduce the transmission of light to the retina – making things appear blurry or misty. It is the cause of around 43% of all blindness.

Surgery to remove the clouded lens and replace it with an artificial one has so far been the only treatment available for cataracts. About 10 million cataract operations are performed each year, globally. The procedure can be life-changing, but who would not want to avoid surgery if a less-invasive treatment was available? This is where sterol eye drops come into the picture. (Sterols are fat-like substances that occur in nature.)

My colleagues and I recently conducted a study in mice that showed promising and dramatic effects on cataracts after we applied a sterol compound to their eyes. When the compound was applied to one eye of 26 mice with cataracts, we found that 61% of the treated lenses showed an improvement in their refractive index gradient. This gradient is a measure of optical density and a vital component of image quality. The opacity of the lenses was reduced in 46% of the mice, as well.

However, the effects were not universal, suggesting that the same remedy may not apply to all cataracts (there are several types).

The compound we used had been tested before, but not for optics. Yet the optical quality of the lens is fundamental to light travelling unimpeded to the retina and hence to maintaining vision.

Investigations using this sterol compound reported in 2015 improved transparency in mouse lenses, and partially restored protein solubility both in the lenses of living mice and in human lenses in a dish.

But a subsequent study in 2019 could not find evidence that this compound reverses protein buildup in rat and human samples, nor that it reverses the opacities in rat lenses with cataracts. However, the sterol compound had not been tested on whole, intact human lenses. And most importantly, the effect of this compound on the optical property of the refractive index (that is, the optical quality of the lens) had not been measured.

Measuring optical quality

I have spent years developing and applying methods of measuring the optical quality of the lens, and have been measuring lens optics for over a decade using the most advanced system in the world, the SPring-8 synchrotron in Japan – a particle accelerator that produces powerful X-rays, allowing measurements to be taken with the highest accuracy yet on optical properties of the eye.

This technology has allowed my colleagues and me to accurately characterise the refractive index gradient in transparent lenses as well as those that have cataracts – something that could not be conducted using a visible light source.

The refractive index gradient is important for image quality because it provides improved focusing capacity. Cataracts disrupt this gradient because of the protein buildup. The application of X-ray measurements has been key to our latest findings. In addition, when we measure optical properties, we do this on whole lenses with the protein distributions left undisturbed in the lens.

The link between a lens’s optical function and the protein solubility and propensity to clump needs to be studied further. This is important for addressing whether it is possible to reverse the process of cataract formation and restore transparency to a clouded lens.

Scientists have long believed that a buildup of the major structural proteins of a cataract – the crystallins – is irreversible. So any possible treatment for a cataract could, at best, halt or slow its progression.

If this is not true and protein aggregation is reversible, then it opens up a wealth of treatment possibilities. Not only can cataracts be prevented by avoiding certain known causes, such as poor nutrition, smoking and certain drugs, such as steroids, it may be possible to use drugs that prevent further progression. Other drugs may even be able to reverse the process of cataract formation and restore clarity to a lens that has become clouded.

Further research needs to include investigations of all proteins in the lens: the major structural proteins of the lens (the crystallins and the water channel proteins) in tandem with studies of optical function.

We are currently looking at the optics of the lens from all aspects, from early developmental stages to adulthood, and looking at how these results map on to changes in proteins.

A great deal more research may be needed, but what our recent research findings have shown is that non-surgical treatment for cataracts is possible – and may be closer than we think.

The Conversation

Barbara Pierscionek currently receives funding from EU under the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Doctoral Training Centre scheme.

ShareTweetSharePin
Next Post
Preventing delirium protects seniors in hospital, but could also ease overcrowding and emergency room backlogs

Preventing delirium protects seniors in hospital, but could also ease overcrowding and emergency room backlogs

Most Read

What causes stuttering? A speech pathology researcher explains the science and the misconceptions around this speech disorder

What causes stuttering? A speech pathology researcher explains the science and the misconceptions around this speech disorder

December 15, 2022
morning back pain

Morning Again Ache Trigger Is Not the Mattress

October 11, 2021

Why Circadian Rhythms Matter for Your Health

July 30, 2024
lower back pain relief exercises

5 decrease again ache aid workouts

October 11, 2021

4 steps to building a healthier relationship with your phone

January 28, 2025
3 years after legalization, we have shockingly little information about how it changed cannabis use and health harms

3 years after legalization, we have shockingly little information about how it changed cannabis use and health harms

October 15, 2021
Nasal vaccines promise to stop the COVID-19 virus before it gets to the lungs – an immunologist explains how they work

Nasal vaccines promise to stop the COVID-19 virus before it gets to the lungs – an immunologist explains how they work

December 14, 2022
bleeding in gum

When The Bleeding in gum Is Severe ?

October 11, 2021
Good Night Sleep

6 Causes of Good Evening Sleep

October 11, 2021
Kick up your heels – ballroom dancing offers benefits to the aging brain and could help stave off dementia

Kick up your heels – ballroom dancing offers benefits to the aging brain and could help stave off dementia

January 3, 2023
Biden is getting prostate cancer treatment, but that’s not the best choice for all men − a cancer researcher describes how she helped her father decide

Biden is getting prostate cancer treatment, but that’s not the best choice for all men − a cancer researcher describes how she helped her father decide

May 20, 2025
Ten small changes you can make today to prevent weight gain

Ten small changes you can make today to prevent weight gain

October 12, 2021

COVID vaccines: how one can pace up rollout in poorer international locations

October 5, 2021

This Simple Hygiene Habit Could Cut Your Risk of Stroke, New Research Reveals

February 1, 2025

Multiple sclerosis: the link with earlier infection just got stronger – new study

October 12, 2021
Support and collaboration with health-care providers can help people make health decisions

Support and collaboration with health-care providers can help people make health decisions

December 16, 2021
Greece to make COVID vaccines mandatory for over-60s, but do vaccine mandates work?

Greece to make COVID vaccines mandatory for over-60s, but do vaccine mandates work?

December 1, 2021
Five ways to avoid pain and injury when starting a new exercise regime

Five ways to avoid pain and injury when starting a new exercise regime

December 30, 2022
woman covered with white blanket

Exploring the Impact of Sleep Patterns on Mental Health

August 4, 2024

Maximize Your Performance – Sync with Your Circadian Rhythms

August 9, 2024
Why are some people faster than others? 2 exercise scientists explain the secrets of running speed

Why are some people faster than others? 2 exercise scientists explain the secrets of running speed

April 29, 2024
Backlash to transgender health care isn’t new − but the faulty science used to justify it has changed to meet the times

Backlash to transgender health care isn’t new − but the faulty science used to justify it has changed to meet the times

January 30, 2024
News of war can impact your mental health — here’s how to cope

Binge-eating disorder is more common than many realise, yet it’s rarely discussed – here’s what you need to know

December 2, 2022
As viral infections skyrocket, masks are still a tried-and-true way to help keep yourself and others safe

As viral infections skyrocket, masks are still a tried-and-true way to help keep yourself and others safe

December 14, 2022
GPs don’t give useful weight-loss advice – new study

GPs don’t give useful weight-loss advice – new study

December 16, 2022
Nutrition advice is rife with misinformation − a medical education specialist explains how to tell valid health information from pseudoscience

Nutrition advice is rife with misinformation − a medical education specialist explains how to tell valid health information from pseudoscience

January 28, 2025
FDA limits access to COVID-19 vaccine to older adults and other high-risk groups – a public health expert explains the new rules

FDA limits access to COVID-19 vaccine to older adults and other high-risk groups – a public health expert explains the new rules

May 21, 2025
Four ways to avoid gaining weight over the festive period – but also why you shouldn’t fret about it too much

Four ways to avoid gaining weight over the festive period – but also why you shouldn’t fret about it too much

December 22, 2022
Nurses’ attitudes toward COVID-19 vaccination for their children are highly influenced by partisanship, a new study finds

Nurses’ attitudes toward COVID-19 vaccination for their children are highly influenced by partisanship, a new study finds

December 2, 2022
How hot is too hot for the human body? Our lab found heat + humidity gets dangerous faster than many people realize

How hot is too hot for the human body? Our lab found heat + humidity gets dangerous faster than many people realize

July 6, 2022
  • Home
  • Health & Wellness
  • Disclaimer

© 2020 DAILY HEALTH NEWS

  • Home
  • Health & Wellness
  • Disclaimer
    • Terms of Use
    • Privacy Policy
    • DMCA Notice

© 2020 DAILY HEALTH NEWS