RetinalGeniX Technologies nears completion of Institutional Review Board for research on DNA/GPS program

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RetinalGeniX Technologies Inc. today unveiled the completion of an Institutional Review Board (“IRB”) for research on its DNA/GPS program.

According to the company, the research by the board ultimately will propose recommendations for enhancing the management of ocular injections, which have become a significant healthcare burden due to their associated complications in treating macular degeneration-related vision loss.

Larry Perich, DO, director of the DNA/GPS program at RetinalGeniX, noted in a company news release the results ultimately help in better management of the condition

"We are near completion of an IRB for research on its DNA/GPS program. We intend to conduct the study on 100 patients in an effort to establish standards for determining effective and ineffective eye injections for treating macular degeneration, the leading cause of retinal blindness,” he said in the company’s news release. “The study will follow global standards for ophthalmology research to ensure that the resulting biomarkers can be universally applied.”

According to the news release, Perich plans to lead the collaborative study among leading universities to identify hematology biomarkers. The goal of the study is to personalize medical evaluations for patients receiving treatment for macular degeneration.

According to the BrightFocus Foundation and JAMA Ophthalmology, approximately 20 million people in the United States have AMD, and nearly 1.5 million Americans have the advanced form of the disease.

"Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) affects one in eight people 60 years of age or older and is the most common cause of irreversible blindness in older persons in developed countries,” The National Center for Biotechnology Information NCBI / NIH said in the news release. “According to thorough estimates, 200 million people worldwide are estimated to have AMD, and by 2040, this number is projected to rise to close to 300 million."