PhD Student Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf Düsseldorf, Nordrhein-Westfalen, Germany
There is still no ideal preclinical in vitro model of the vitreous body, which necessitates the use of many animal studies in the development of new therapeutic approaches. Therefore, our aim was to adjust vitreous substitutes to match the physicochemical properties of the vitreous body and select the best substitute to reduce the number of animal experiments and improve preclinical development. To achieve this, we determined the relaxation times, viscosities, loss factors, and diffusion rates of therapeutically relevant drugs and successfully adapted them to match the properties of porcine vitreous bodies, which serve as surrogates for human ones. It was demonstrated that the substitutes described in the literature required improvement, and gels composed of gellan gum or agar in combination with hyaluronic acid proved to be the most suitable. Furthermore, based on this, the first prototypes of models were developed that follow the principle of a flow cell and contain the optimized vitreous substitute as the central compartment. This allows for the in vitro simulation of drug release, distribution, and clearance following intravitreal administration.
Learning Objectives:
Recognize the importance and benefits of a novel preclinical in vitro vitreous model, thereby enabling more efficient drug development and reducing the number of animal experiments.
Experience the necessary rheological improvements of the vitreous body substitutes, particularly with regard to their viscosities and loss factors.
Discover the importance of the comparably adjusted diffusion properties relative to the vitreous body as a basis for developing a new in vitro vitreous model to simulate drug release, distribution, and clearance following intravitreal administration.
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