Macular degeneration is a medical condition where the light sensing cells in the macula malfunction and over time cease to work. It is the main cause of central vision loss in blindness today for those over the age of fifty.

Zinc link to leading cause of blindness macular degeneration

Macular Degeneration :: Zinc link to leading cause of blindness macular degeneration

An international research team led by scientists at the Institute of Ophthalmology, UCL (University College London), has found high levels of zinc in the deposits in the eye which are a marker of age-related macular degeneration (AMD), the leading cause of blindness in the elderly in the developed world.

The finding, published in the latest edition of Experimental Eye Research, contributes to a better understanding of AMD and could influence the development of effective treatments.

AMD is a form of macular disease which affects the eye's retina. An estimated half a million people in the UK have it, and 40 per cent of these are over 75. Despite the potentially devastating impact on patients? quality of life, no successful therapy to stop or reverse the progression of AMD is available in the majority of cases.

An early sign of the disease is the formation of microscopic structures called ?drusen? in the eye. Exactly what the effects of these are and why they form is not yet fully understood. Explaining the research, Dr Imre Lengyel, UCL Institute of Ophthalmology, said: ?We have discovered that drusen in eyes with AMD have very high levels of zinc.

?Zinc had previously been shown to contribute to the formation of plaques in the brains of patients with Alzheimer?s disease, so it was logical for us to test the idea that zinc might also contribute to the formation of plaque-like drusen in the eye as well. AMD can be considered as the Alzheimer?s disease of the eye, in that both involve the build-up of proteins and metals like zinc and copper into microscopic clumps.

?What is particularly important is that within the zinc that we found, there is a small pool ? about 5-10 per cent ? of what is known as ?free? or ?loosely-bound? zinc. Generally, zinc is essential to keeping a molecule?s shape, but mobilised zinc can cause lots of problems. However, since it is a small proportion of the overall zinc pool, it?s straightforward to target it. That?s what researchers are beginning to do with Alzheimer?s disease, developing methodologies and drugs that can capture this mobilised zinc and see if it slows down the degenerative process. This study shows that we could now potentially take a similar route for AMD treatment.?

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