BRIEFLY
- GLAUCOMA RESEARCH FOUNDATION AWARDS
$200,000 TO FIVE PROMISING RESEARCH PROJECTS. Grants
in the amount of $200,000 were awarded in January by the Glaucoma
Research Foundation (GRF) to fund five Pilot Projects at Tel Aviv
University, University of California at Irvine, University of Alabama
at Birmingham, Dalhousie University and the Medical College of Wisconsin,
according to GRF President and CEO Thomas M. Brunner. The Pilot Project
grants provide essential seed money for research studies with breakthrough
potential, according to Brunner. Results from the studies promise
to accelerate the pace of discovery for improved glaucoma treatments
and enhance the quality of life for people with glaucoma. Pilot Grant
awardees included $40,000 to Ruth Ashery-Padan, PhD, Tel Aviv University,
Israel, to study the roles of the Pax6 gene in the development of
the trabecular meshwork and Schlemm"s canal; $40,000 to Donald J.
Brown, PhD, University of California, Irvine, to study pressure-induced
dynamic 3D changes in lamina cribrosa using second harmonic imaging
microscopy; $40,000 to Christopher A. Girkin, MD MSPH, University
of Alabama, Birmingham, to study the role of the lamina cribrosa in
development and progression of glaucoma; $40,000 to Sharon A. Haymes,
PhD, Dalhousie University, Nova Scotia, Canada, to study strategies
used by glaucoma patients to view real-world scenes; and $40,000 to
Brian A. Link, PhD, Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, to identify
genes that promote retinal ganglion cell degeneration in the context
of elevated intraocular pressure. Founded in 1978, the Glaucoma Research
Foundation works to prevent vision loss from glaucoma by investing
in innovative research, education and support with the ultimate goal
of finding a cure. For more information, go to www.glaucoma.org.
- INSPIRE LICENSES AZASITE FOR OCULAR
INFECTIONS. Inspire Pharmaceuticals
recently signed an exclusive licensing agreement with InSite Vision
Incorporated for the U.S. and Canadian commercialization of AzaSite
(1.0% azithromycin ophthalmic solution), a topical anti-infective
product currently under review by the FDA for treating bacterial conjunctivitis.
Under the terms of the agreement, Inspire has acquired from InSite
exclusive rights to commercialize AzaSite for ocular infections in
the United States and Canada. AzaSite contains the drug azithromycin,
a broad-spectrum antibiotic, formulated with DuraSite, InSite"s patented
drug-delivery vehicle. According to terms of the agreement, Inspire
will pay InSite Vision an upfront license fee of $13 million and an
additional $19 million milestone payment contingent upon regulatory
approval by the FDA. Inspire will also pay a royalty of 20 percent
in the first two years of commercialization and 25 percent thereafter
on net sales of AzaSite for ocular infections in the United States
and Canada, if approved by regulatory authorities. The two companies
have also entered into a supply agreement for azithromycin. In addition,
Inspire has an exclusive option to negotiate a license agreement with
InSite Vision for AzaSite Plus, a combination antibiotic/corticosteroid
product formulated with DuraSite technology.
- ALCON HONORS LEADING SCIENTISTS FOR
OUTSTANDING OPHTHALMIC RESEARCH. The
independent Scientific Selection Committee of the Alcon Research Institute
(ARI) recently announced the ARIs 2007 award recipients, recognized
for their outstanding research contributions to the field of ophthalmology.
The ARI, established in 1981 and sponsored by Alcon Laboratories,
Inc., a subsidiary of Alcon, identifies exceptional ophthalmic scientists
and awards each with $100,000 unrestricted grants to further their
research endeavors. Each year, five or six awards are granted based
on the nominees research achievements. Many of the award recipients
have also been recognized with awards from other leading organizations,
including the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology
(ARVO), the American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO), International
Society for Eye Research (ISER) and the American Society of Cataract
and Refractive Surgeons (ASCRS). The 2007 ARI Award winners are: Rando
Allikmets, PhD, Acquavella Associate Professor and Research Director,
Departments of Ophthalmology and Pathology & Cell Biology, Harkness
Eye Institute, Columbia University; Dimitri Azar, MD, Billie Alexander
Field Chair of Ophthalmologic Research, professor and department head,
University of Illinois at Chicago; Paulus de Jong, MD, PhD, Clinical
Ophthalmogenetics Department, Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience
of the Royal Academy of Arts and Sciences, Amsterdam; Paul Lee, MD,
JD, James Pitzer Gills III, MD and Joy Gills, Professor of Ophthalmology
and vice chair, Department of Ophthalmology, Albert Eye Research Institute,
Duke University; Lois Smith, MD, PhD, associate professor of ophthalmology,
Harvard Medical School, Children"s Hospital, Boston; and Bernhard
H.F. Weber, PhD, professor and head of the Institute of Human Genetics,
University of Regensburg, Germany. For more information on the ARI,
go to www.alcon.com/contact-alcon/alcon-res-inst.asp.
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