Macular Degeneration News and Research

Latest Macular Degeneration News and Research

Veggies good for eyesight as you age

Scientists say a diet rich in the compounds lutein and zeaxanthin which are found in carrots and yellow and green vegetables such as sweetcorn, broccoli, peas and squash, offer protection against damage to eyesight in later life.

15 Aug 2006

Scientists slow vision loss with vitamin E, alpha-lipoic acid and other antioxidant chemicals

Scientists at Johns Hopkins have successfully blocked the advance of retinal degeneration in mice with a form of retinitis pigmentosa (RP) by treating them with vitamin E, alpha-lipoic acid and other antioxidant chemicals.

24 Jul 2006

Antioxidants may slow vision loss

21 Jul 2006

Certain genetic variations increase risk of the vision disorder age-related macular degeneration

The combination of a certain genetic variation, along with inflammatory factors and smoking, significantly increases the risk of the vision disorder age-related macular degeneration.

19 Jul 2006

Don't smoke and eat fish to keep your sight later in life

New research from Australia and the U.S. into Age-related Macular Degeneration, has found that cigarette smoking increases the risk but eating fish protects against it, and hormone replacement therapy makes no difference whatsoever.

10 Jul 2006

New Australian 'assassin' drug has huge potential

Australian researchers have come up with a new drug which they believe has the potential to fight a wide range of illnesses and diseases including cancer, age-related blindness, heart disease and arthritis.

5 Jul 2006

New class of experimental drug that targets master regulator gene called c-Jun

University of New South Wales (UNSW) researchers have announced they are developing a new class of experimental drug that has the potential to treat a diverse range of health problems, from inflammation and cancer through to eye and heart disease.

3 Jul 2006

New drug restores sight in sufferers from AMD

A new drug with the capacity to reverse vision loss in some patients with age-related macular degeneration (AMD) has won approval from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in the U.S.

3 Jul 2006

University of Florida finding could lead to approaches to treat macular degeneration

University of Florida scientists conducting experiments with mice have found evidence that the body naturally replenishes small amounts of cells in the eye essential for healthy vision.

9 Jun 2006

Dietary glycemic index and carbohydrate in relation to early age-related macular degeneration

Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is one of the leading causes of vision loss in older adults and a person's risk may partly depend upon diet.

6 Jun 2006

New MIT designed device allows visually challenged to access Internet

An MIT poet has developed a small, relatively inexpensive "seeing machine" that can allow people who are blind, or visually challenged like her, to access the Internet, view the face of a friend, "previsit" unfamiliar buildings and more.

1 Jun 2006

Little evidence multivitamins prevent chronic diseases

There is little scientific evidence to suggest that taking a multivitamin supplement helps Americans ward off chronic diseases, including most cancers and cardiovascular disease.

23 May 2006

NIH panel says little benefit to be gained by taking multivitamin supplements

According to a National Institutes of Health panel there is little evidence to support that taking multivitamin supplements is of any benefit to healthy adults.

21 May 2006

Panel calls for expanded oversight of vitamin and mineral supplements

An independent panel convened this week by the NIH Office of Medical Applications of Research and the Office of Dietary Supplements assessed the available evidence on the safety and effectiveness of multivitamin/minerals (MVMs).

17 May 2006

Statins may improve circulation in the eye

The cholesterol-lowering medications known as statins may improve circulation in the eye, potentially reducing the risk of certain eye diseases, according to a study in the May issue of Archives of Ophthalmology.

9 May 2006

New insight into the way an embryonic retina cell develops

The discovery provides a new vantage point for understanding how a healthy visual system develops. It also raises the possibility of re-directing the production of cell types as needed to stave off eye disease.

9 May 2006

217 new targets for anti-cancer drugs

By identifying novel genes critical to cancer progression, biologists at the U.S. Department of Energy's Argonne National Laboratory have expanded the number of drug targets researchers have available for study to find ways to stop tumors in their tracks.

18 Apr 2006

Fish oil may help protect against age-related macular degeneration

A paper published in Trends in Neuroscience by Nicolas G. Bazan, MD, PhD of the Neuroscience Center of Excellence at LSU Health Sciences Center in New Orleans, reports on the role that the omega-3 fatty acids in fish oil play in protecting cells in the retina from degenerative diseases like retinitis pigmentosa and age-related macular degeneration.

7 Apr 2006

Yellow pigment that sits on the retina focus of macular degeneration research

Whether a tiny yellow pigment is the main thing standing between many older people and macular degeneration is under study at the Medical College of Georgia.

4 Apr 2006

Mutant genes trigger AMD but may lighten the way to new treatments

According to new research in the U.S., the most common form of blindness in the elderly, age-related macular degeneration (AMD), can be attributed to just two genes which trigger the condition.

7 Mar 2006