UNA4CAREER
This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation Programme under the Marie Sklodowska-Curie grant agreement Nยบ 847635.
920415. Group of Innovation, Therapy and Pharmaceutical Development in Ophthalmology
Department of Pharmaceutics and Food Technology
Faculty of Pharmacy
Multidisciplinary research group (UCM 920415) dedicated to the development and evaluation of novel ophthalmic formulations. Pharmacists, ophthalmologists and veterinary surgeons constitute the research team.Main research fields:
* Ocular drug delivery with special expertise in microencapsulation of active substances (proteins and low molecular drugs alone or in combination) for the treatment of posterior segment diseases (age related macular degeneration, glaucoma and other neurodegenerative diseases affecting the reina) .
*Innovation of ophthalmic formulations.
*Development of novel formulations for the treatment of dry eye and glaucoma.
The research group is located within the facilities of Complutense University of Madrid (UCM) and the San Carlos Clinical Hospital (IdISSC, HCSC), whom material resources, infrastructures and equipments allow the development of high quality research projects (i.e. HPLC-MS, HPLC-UV, GPC, spectrometer, rheometer, tensiometer, homogeneizers, centrifuges, ultracentrifuge, cell culture facilities, among others). When needed, the reseach group uses the available resources of Research Support Centers of UCM (University Facilities for electronic and confocal microscopy, proteomic and genomic, etc.) and HCSC as well, such as the Transversal Experimental Surgical Unit or the Center for Microscopy.
Diseases of the posterior segment of the eye are increasing considerably. Among them, age-related macular degeneration, diabetic retinopathy and glaucoma are the most common cause of blindness. These diseases are characterized to be chronic and multifactorial and need therapeutic concentrations of the active substances maintained during long term. Treatment of most of these diseases requieres repeated injections into the eye, which is associated with significant patient discomfort and potentially serious side effects, including bleeding, infection and retinal detachment. As such, there is an unmet clinical need for the development of new and improved drug delivery systems to treat these pathologies. This project aims to address this challenge through the development of novel drug delivery systems as an alternative to multiple intraocular injections for the treatment of retinal disorders.
