Three Important Recent Research Findings Shed New Light on Age-Related Macular Degeneration (AMD)

Three Important Recent Research Findings Shed New Light on Age-Related Macular Degeneration (AMD)

A study in the August 2008 New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM) suggested that Dry AMD--a form of Age-related Macular Degeneration (AMD) found in eight to nine million Americans--may be associated with a gene in our body. The study also found that in individuals with this genetic variation, a currently practiced modern treatment for AMD may lead to serious adverse consequences, including blindness.

Researcher Kang Zhang and co-workers from the Shiley Eye Center at the University of California, San Diego, found that a key protein that alerts our immune system to the presence of viral infections--called Toll-like Receptor 3 (TLR3)--was linked with dry AMD. Zhang and co-workers also noted that if individuals with a genetic variant of TLR3 are treated with a modern treatment for AMD--called RNA interference (RNAi)--they could be at risk for serious adverse effects, including blindness. RNAi is a modern modality of treatment that is used to silence the genes related to various disease conditions.

The study links the occurrence of dry AMD with a genetic variation of TLR3, which indicates that some persons with this particular genetic variation will be more prone to develop dry AMD. Given that gene test is emerging as a new trend in personal health, genetic linkage of dry AMD may help people know--through gene tests--whether they've propensity for the disease. And this in turn may help them adopt proper preventive measures to stay away from the disease. The second component of the study has raised the question of safety in adopting modern treatments for AMD. It has cited the evidence that a new treatment approach for AMD--RNAi--may lead to serious adverse consequences, including blindness. This finding has reinforced the position of nutritional treatment in AMD, because treatment of AMD with nutritional supplements is safe and substantially effective.

Elderly People Remain in the Dark About Age-Related Macular Degeneration

Research released this month by the Toronto-based AMD Alliance International (AMDAI) showed that AMD ranked lowest among a list of conditions that are likely to affect the aging population, when participants in that study were asked how much they know about those conditions.

This study suggested that people lack knowledge and concern regarding AMD, and it is preventing them from taking critical steps to halt or slow the progression of the disease. According to the study, amid those who had a high propensity for loss of vision due to AMD, only 56 percent of the participants met an eye specialist once a year and more. That apart, when the participants were asked about their knowledge about conditions that are likely to affect the aging populations, AMD ranked lowest in the list.

The AMDAI spoke for the necessity of increased understanding about AMD. In the web document related to the study, the chair of the organization David Herman says, "This study clearly indicates that there is a low level of concern about AMD and many people aren't seeking adequate eye care until the disease has reached more of an advanced stage." As antioxidants help keep the eyes healthy (for example, by cutting the risk and slowing the progress of AMD)--regular intake of antioxidant-rich nutritional supplements may be of some practical help for people who avoid visit an eye doctor at regular intervals.

More Support for Biochemistry of Antioxidants in the Treatment of AMD

The Journal of Biological Chemistry (JBC), has reconfirmed that antioxidants substantially help combat AMD in a study published on September 9, 2008.

The study showed two damaging processes in retina that play an important role in the development of AMD. Conducted by researchers from Brigham Young University (BYU) and Cornell University, the research also found that antioxidants fight against AMD by significantly disrupting the link between those two processes (in retina) and extending the lifetime of the irreplaceable photoreceptors and other cells in retina. "The implication is that people at risk of macular degeneration could help prevent the disease by consuming antioxidants," says, in a news release, Heidi Vollmer-Snarr, co-author of the study and a chemist at the BYU.

The authors explained the role that antioxidants play in tackling AMD. In the study, the researchers looked at a compound called A2E (which is a byproduct of natural cellular activity) and damage to mitochondria (the power plants present inside the cells). The researchers found that when oxidative stress is created on A2E, by light exposure, it disrupts the energy production in mitochondria. It results a shortage of energy inside the cells which in turn hampers the daily cleaning and maintenance of photoreceptors and other type of retinal cells. "The result is more A2E buildup, and the cycle of destruction hastens the death of these vital visual cells, which are not replaced when they die," says a BYU news release associated with the study, adding, "The experiments performed with visual cells from rats, cows and humans showed that antioxidants could completely counter the damage." Regarding the role of antioxidants in AMD, research in past suggested that antioxidants found in nutritional supplements (for example, Lutein, Zeaxanthin, Vitamin E and beta-carotene) work as scavengers for free radicals and protect the retina against damages caused by oxidative stress.

Ophthalmologist and Eye Surgeon, Dr. Paul Krawitz founded VisiVite.com in 2001. VisiVite publishes pertinent eye health information, such ashttp://www.visivite.com/macular-degeneration-explained.html and additionally provides customers with state-of-the-art macular degeneration vitamins to lessen the risk ofage-related macular degeneration. Their products range from the VisiVite Omega-3 eye supplements and Macular Degeneration Vitamins to Dry Eye Relief Vitamins, and a full range of multivitamins to improve your ocular health.

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