Celanese has entered into a research agreement with US-based Johns Hopkins University’s ophthalmology department to study the effect of sustained drug delivery to the suprachoroidal space in the eye.
The specialty materials company said that the findings from the study can offer useful insights to support the treatment paradigm for retinal disorders.
According to Celanese, direct dosing of therapeutics to the suprachoroidal space is more common nowadays as an approach for retinal disorders treatment. It involves routine office-based ocular injections.
The study will use a bioinert implant, built on the VitalDose platform, to give sustained ocular medication delivery for over six months. This offers a different method for continuous, dependable dosage and will lessen the burden of treatment on the patient.
Celanese said that a range of treatments used for ophthalmologic disorders can be delivered using the VitalDose Drug Delivery Platform. It offers reliable, controlled-release performance and is in use in approved parenteral drug products in the US and Europe, said the company.
The platform has demonstrated biocompatibility and achieves more than six months release of mAbs, small molecules, peptides, and RNAi therapeutics.
Celanese ophthalmology global business strategy head Cyonna Holmes said: “Our collaboration with John Hopkins Department of Ophthalmology allows us to seek out scientific advancements with potential to improve patient health in ophthalmology.
“The VitalDose technology platform has potential well beyond its present commercialised applications.
“That’s why we explore collaborations that cross traditional boundaries with the goal to realise improvements in patient compliance and health through innovative treatments in areas like ophthalmology, women’s health, rare diseases and the central nervous system.”
Parts of the planned research will be conducted by scientists at the Celanese Development & Feasibility Lab.
The lab has offered specialised assistance to customers’ medication delivery development initiatives ever since it opened in 2021.
In June last year, Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center announced a new automated liquid biopsy test to detect breast cancer within five hours.
