Glaucoma is a leading cause of blindness in the United States and accounts for 15 percent of blindness worldwide. The Vision Research Plan for the National Eye Institute establishes identifying the biological mechanisms responsible for glaucoma as a national priority. Recent research indicates that many forms of glaucoma have a genetic component. Development of a non-invasive, accurate, and reliable method to measure lop in rodents will greatly facilitate the identification of genes involved in IOP regulation and the susceptibility of the retina and the optic nerve to glaucomatous damage. A non-invasive technique for measuring lop in mice will enable repeated measurements on a single eye and be more useful for investigating the effect of age, drugs, and other factors on IOP over time. Luna Innovations, along with Dr. Simon John at the Jackson Laboratory, Dr. John Morrison at the Casey Eye Institute, and Dr. Jay McLaren at the Mayo Clinic, propose to develop a system for non-invasive intraocular pressure measurement in rodents by providing simultaneous measurement of contact area and applied force. The Phase I program will focus on developing prototype tonometers and demonstrating feasibility with rats before advancing to mouse studies during the Phase II program.
