Research On Possible Treatments
Future treatments may involve retinal transplants, artificial retinal implants, gene therapy, stem cells, nutritional supplements, and/or drug therapies.
2006: Stem cells: UK Researchers working with mice, transplanted mouse stem cells which were at an advanced stage of development, and already programmed to develop into photoreceptor cells, into mice that had been genetically induced to mimic the human conditions of retinitis pigmentosa and age-related macular degeneration. These photoreceptors developed and made the necessary neural connections to the animal's retinal nerve cells, a key step in the restoration of sight. Previously it was believed that the mature retina has no regenerative ability. This research may in the future lead to using transplants in humans to relieve blindness.
2008: Scientists at the Osaka Bioscience Institute have identified a protein, named Pikachurin, which they believe could lead to a treatment for retinitis pigmentosa.
2010: A possible gene therapy seems to work in mice.
2010: R-Tech Ueno (Japanese Medicine manufacture enterprise) completes phase II clinical study on ophthalmic solution UF-021 (Product Name Ocuseva (TM)) for Retinitis Pigmentosa
Also see Wikipedia entry on Tauroursodeoxycholic acid (TUDCA)
Read more about this topic: Retinitis Pigmentosa
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