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B.C. RESEARCHER DEVELOPING VISION-SAVING GENE THERAPY
December 2, 2009 - VANCOUVER – Another breakthrough treatment for macular degeneration – the leading cause of vision loss in Canada – is being developed in B.C. by a top genetic ophthalmologist who came here from the U.K. because of the world-class eye research going on in this province, Minister Iain Black said today.
Dr. Kevin Gregory-Evans has been appointed the Julia Levy B.C. leadership chair in macular research at the University of British Columbia. The chair is funded by the Province’s Leading Edge Endowment Fund, UBC and QLT Inc., a UBC spinoff company co-founded by Levy. QLT developed Visudyne, the first macular degeneration breakthrough, which uses a combination of drugs and laser therapy to treat patients around the world.
“Macular degeneration robs millions of people of their eyesight – and their independence – as they grow older,” said Black, Minister of Small Business, Technology and Economic Development. “With the support of this $4.5-million partnership between the Province, QLT and UBC, Dr. Gregory-Evans will keep B.C. on the cutting edge of research to find new treatments, which are becoming more and more important as our population ages.”
Gregory-Evans is researching the use of genetically modified cells to deliver long-lasting therapy via a single injection into the eye, which would spare the average patient 13 additional shots over up to two years. This is the first time genetically modified cells have been investigated to deliver drugs to the eye, although the method is used for other organs.
“As the baby boomer population ages, the number of people with macular degeneration is expected to double over the next 25 years,” said Gregory-Evans, who came to Vancouver from London, England, where he was a lead researcher at the Imperial College and Western Eye Hospital. “The development of new treatment delivery methods will go a long way to improving the independence and quality of life of the aging population.”
Further down the road, he hopes to develop drug-delivering cells that could be injected into an arm vein instead of the eye. He is also researching genetic causes of retinal diseases, including retinitis pigmentosa, with the goal of developing a genetic screening program that would enable earlier diagnosis and treatment for children and adults to prevent vision loss.
“We are thrilled to welcome Kevin and his wife Cheryl, an internationally recognized eye researcher in her own right, to UBC and Vancouver Coastal Health,” said Stephen Toope, UBC president. “We are also grateful for the provincial government’s continued investment in research and Dr. Levy and QLT’s generous contribution to this, UBC’s eighth, LEEF chair.”
Gregory-Evans is a professor in the department of ophthalmology and visual sciences in UBC’s Faculty of Medicine, a clinical ophthalmologist with the Eye Care Centre at Vancouver General Hospital, a research scientist with the Vancouver Coastal Health Research Institute, and a senior member of the Brain Research Centre. He also has links to the Centre for Macular Research (the only one of its kind in Canada) and the Centre for Molecular Medicine and Therapeutics.
The Province provided $2.25 million to endow the chair permanently through its $56.25-million Leading Edge Endowment Fund. UBC has contributed $500,000 from previous QLT royalty payments, and QLT will cover the balance over 41/2 years.
“My mother developed macular degeneration in her 80s and eventually lost her central vision before she passed away at age 94,” said Levy, who has retired from QLT and is now a UBC professor emerita of microbiology. “Being able to apply my research to this disease was one of the most fabulous experiences I’ve ever had, and I am especially gratified to be able to continue supporting advances in knowledge and treatment in this way.”
Funding for LEEF is part of the $1.7 billion government has committed to research and innovation in B.C. since 2001, nearly half of which is health-related. Gregory-Evans is the 20th LEEF chair to be appointed, the ninth with a health focus, and the eighth at UBC.
Editors: Photos showing normal vision compared with that of someone with macular degeneration are online at www.mediaroom.gov
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Contact:
Carolyn Heiman
Communications Manager Ministry of Small Business, Technology and Economic Development
250 952-0152 / cell 250 888-3545
Brian Lin
Senior Communications Co-ordinator
UBC Public Affairs Office
604 822-2234
604 818-5685 (cell)
Lisa Carver
Regional Communications Leader
Vancouver Coastal Health/Research Institute
604 875-4111 ext 61777
604 319-7533 (cell)
For more information on government services or to subscribe to the Province’s news feeds using RSS, visit the Province’s website at www.gov.bc.ca.
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