Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is one of the leading causes of blindness in the industrialized world, affecting over 8 million patients in the United State alone. While the wet (exudative) form of the disease is treated with intraocular injections, there are currently no approved therapies available for the dry (non-exudative) form of the disease which often affects both eyes in patients with AMD. Current research has focused on developing drugs that can be injected into the eye, but the treatment burden associated with monthly injections limits the effectiveness of this approach. Hence, there is a pressing need for a long-term therapeutic solution for patients suffering from this blinding disease. We detail a novel implantable intraocular device, which adsorbs and traps complement factors associated with AMD. In this study, we tested a novel approach by dialyzing proteins from the vitreous using biocompatible implants composed of a nanopore polyacrylonitrile polymer membrane. Preliminary in vitro and in vivo studies demonstrate a high affinity and capacity for complement protein absorption. After a three-month implantation in New Zealand White Cross rabbits, the implant demonstrated good biocompatibility with no inflammation and normal retinal physiology and histology. These studies demonstrate that prolonged CF suppression intraocularly may be accomplished with a nanopore polymer membrane.

中文翻译：

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玻璃体蛋白结合纳米孔透析膜装置。

年龄相关性黄斑变性（AMD）是工业化世界中失明的主要原因之一，仅在美国就影响了超过800万患者。尽管该疾病的湿性（渗出性）形式通过眼内注射治疗，但目前尚无批准的治疗该疾病的干性（非渗出性）形式的疗法，该疗法通常会影响AMD患者的双眼。当前的研究集中在开发可以注射到眼睛中的药物，但是与每月注射相关的治疗负担限制了这种方法的有效性。因此，迫切需要针对患有这种致盲疾病的患者的长期治疗方案。我们详细介绍了一种新型的可植入眼内装置，该装置可吸收和捕获与AMD相关的补体因子。在这个研究中，我们使用由纳米孔聚丙烯腈聚合物膜组成的生物相容性植入物，通过从玻璃体中渗析蛋白质来测试一种新方法。初步体外和体内研究证明补体蛋白吸收具有很高的亲和力和能力。在新西兰白十字兔中植入三个月后，该植入物表现出良好的生物相容性，没有炎症，并且视网膜生理和组织学正常。这些研究表明，用纳米孔聚合物膜可以长时间眼内抑制CF。