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PKC-412
A new drug that, in mice, completely halts the abnormal growth of blood vessels in the eye that cause "wet" macular degeneration.
PKC412
Posted by Sherry on August 21, 1999 at 13:08:07:
Does anyone have any information on this new drug(PKC412), the company and/or testing? I read about it in Popular Science, saying that it would be available for human testing in the next year. Thank you.
New Drug Halts Two Causes of Blindness in Mice
(Boston Globe, June 10, 1999)
Researchers at Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions are expressing enthusiasm about a new drug that, in mice, completely halts the abnormal growth of blood vessels in the eye that causes diabetic retinopathy and age-related macular degeneration, two common blinding diseases. Scientists have been searching for a way of stopping the growth of blood vessels in or beneath the retina, the light-sensitive layer at the back of the eye. The abnormal vessels often leak fluid or blood and progressively destroy vision.
The new drug, made by Novartis Ltd. Pharmaceuticals and labeled PKC 412, blocks chemicals that foster angiogenesis, or the growth of new blood vessels, said the scientists, headed by Dr. Peter A. Campochiaro, a professor of ophthalmology and neuroscience at Johns Hopkins. The results are published in the June (1999) issue of the American Journal of Pathology.
While results in mice do not necessarily predict the effectiveness of a treatment in humans, Campochiaro said in a statement, "This is the first drug I've seen that has a knock-your-socks-off kind of effect," adding that previously studied drugs were only about 50 percent effective. Human trials of the drug could begin next year, he said.
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