Researcher on gene therapy for inherited blindness addresses Emirates Ophthalmology Conference

The conference was held from 20-22 November at Dubai Festival City, organized by the Emirates Ophthalmic Society (EMAOS) in partnership with the Dubai Health Authority (DHA).

Professor Ali led the UK research team that announced results from the world's first clinical trial to test a revolutionary gene therapy treatment for a type of inherited blindness.

The results, published earlier this year, showed that the experimental treatment was safe and
could improve sight. The findings were a landmark for gene therapy technology and could have a significant impact on future treatments for eye disease.

Professor Ali explained that the trial results were actually 14 years in the making; the first five years were spent on developing the technology to deliver genes to the eye; the next five years were devoted to proof of concept studies. The first trial was undertaken in 2007 and the first results published in 2008.

The results indicated that light sensitivity in the treated eye increased by up to one thousand fold. The next phase of the study in
2009 will study nine patients and increase the dose of the genetic material administered to patients. Future patients in the trials could
include those from the Middle East, subject to the logistics of travel and the time commitment required to complete the batteries of tests.

Sight loss has a devastating effect on people's lives and until recently there was no hope for people with degenerative diseases of the retina.

Blindness is thought to be the biggest cause of disability in the U.A.E. and hereditary eye disease is the foremost cause of blindness in children here.

The latest trial results provide even greater levels of confidence in the technique. "The new results suggest that the potential for gene
therapy even for the most severe cases of retinal degeneration is even greater than I believed just a few months ago," comments Professor Ali.

Dr Chris Canning, CEO and Medical Director of Moorfields Eye Hospital Dubai adds, "Professor Ali's recent ground breaking developments with human clinical trials in gene therapy provide the evidence that suggests that these results justify support for the development of gene therapies for a wide range of eye disorders bringing new hope to millions of people."

Specialists from Moorfields Eye Hospital Dubai chaired/presented a total of seven topics at the Dubai conference.