Biotechnology company Applied Genetic Technologies Corporation (AGTC) and early stage medical device company Bionic Sight LLC have entered into a strategic research and development collaboration to develop a new optogenetic therapy and device aimed at potentially restoring retinal function in patients with visual deficits or blindness due to retinal disease.
The new approach would reportedly leverage AGTC's experience in gene therapy and ophthalmology with Bionic Sight's neuro-prosthetic device and algorithm for retinal coding. Optogenetics would reportedly be used to stimulate the remaining healthy cells in the retinas of patients with visual deficits or blindness, seeking to restore normal neural signaling.
The Bionic Sight device reportedly combines a camera with proprietary software to convert incoming images into "retinal code" capable of activating the optogenetic protein delivered by AAV gene therapy. Activation of this protein causes the targeted cells to fire in specific patterns recreating images the brain can detect.
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Source: Applied Genetic Technologies Corporation (AGTC)