NTU's new centre to engineer eye-disease treatments

A new centre at the Nanyang Technological University (NTU) has developed a slow-release drug that can be injected to treat the eye disease glaucoma.

Researchers at the Ocular Therapeutic Engineering Centre, which officially opened on Tuesday, wrapped an existing anti-glaucoma drug in tiny nanocapsules which can be injected painlessly into the eye's surface.

A single injection can deliver drugs for up to three months, and these are expected to work better than current treatments, where the same drug is applied as eyedrops that often flow out of the eye and are hard for patients to remember to apply.

Now, human trials of the technology are about to begin. The centre will also develop technologies to treat other eye conditions like cataracts and retinal diseases.