Project

‘Clear-View’ - photoablation of eye floaters

Acronym
Clearview2
Code
F2024/IOF-StepStone/033
Duration
01 February 2025 → 31 December 2027
Funding
Regional and community funding: Industrial Research Fund
Research disciplines
  • Medical and health sciences
    • Computational evolutionary biology, comparative genomics and population genomics
Keywords
Eye floaters vitreous opacities nanobubbles pulsed-laser photosensitizers collagen aggregates myopia ophthalmology ablation NIR-II dyes 1064 nm YAG laser vitreolysis nanotechnology nanomaterials.
 
Project description

Vitreous opacities are clumps of collagen fibers within the vitreous that cast shadows on the retina, appearing as ‘eye floaters’ to patients. All too often, patients are left untreated. UGent has introduced ‘Clear-View’, being a vapor nanobubble based approach to destroy vitreous opacities. Following intravitreal injection of photosensitizers, designed to accumulate on vitreous opacities, applying laser pulses at a low energy generates vapor nanobubbles which mechanically destroy the opacities in rabbit eyes and isolated human specimens of eye floaters. We aim to further clinically translate this technology by developing a photosensitizer, which is safe and effective, and fully compatible with the ocular pulsed laser currently used by ophthalmologists. This strategy will allow the clinical use of Clear-View without the need to develop a new ocular laser or adapt existing lasers. Regulatory and quality, IP- and TT- work will be further elaborated to optimally prepare the founding of a UGent spin-off.