rAAV prostaglandin-based gene therapy lowers intraocular pressure and preserves optic nerve health in glaucomatous DBA/2J mice

Open-angle glaucoma (OAG) affects approximately 57.5 million individuals worldwide and is characterized by the progressive loss of retinal ganglion cells (RGC) and irreversible optic nerve damage resulting from chronic ocular hypertension. Intraocular pressure (IOP) is the only major modifiable risk factor in OAG and clinical treatments necessarily aim to lower IOP in order to preserve RGCs and prevent vison loss. Pharmacological therapies, such as prostaglandin analog containing eye drops, are known to be effective at reducing IOP, but are critically undermined by poor patient compliance and are unable to control for potentially damaging diurnal fluctuations in IOP, leading to vision loss even in patient’s diagnosed early. Herein we evaluate the effectiveness of a long-acting, single use, prostaglandin-based recombinant adeno-associated virus (rAAV)-mediated IOP-lowering gene therapy treatment in glaucomatous DBA/2J mice and demonstrate that sustained IOP reduction leads to preservation of both optic nerve anatomy and function in end-stage glaucomatous disease.