title: Current and investigational pharmacotherapeutic approaches for modulating retinal angiogenesis.
abstract: Retinal vascular development is a carefully orchestrated developmental process during which retinal and choroidal vasculature form to provide a dual vascular supply to the neurosensory retina and retinal pigment epithelium. The most common causes of vision loss in children and adults involve at least in part perturbation of the normal vascular physiology or development. Vascular endothelial growth factor has emerged as a key molecular regulator of retinal vascular development as well as retinal and choroidal neovascularization, which underlie the pathophysiology of many retinal diseases. Over the past decade, the advent of injectable pharmacotherapeutic agents into the vitreous cavity of the eye has revolutionized our management of neovascular age-related macular degeneration and other retinal diseases and has, for the first time, offered an opportunity to improve vision rather than just slow the progression of disease processes. The transient duration of these agents, however, requires chronic treatment with repeated intraocular injections and significant treatment burden for patients and the healthcare system. Novel treatments modulating retinal angiogenesis offer the promise of improved efficacy, decreased treatment burden and improved cost-effectiveness.
authors.affiliation: Duke University Eye Center, Erwin Road, DUMC 3802, Durham, NC 27710, USA.
authors.forename: Bozho
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Todorich
authors.forename: Glenn
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Yiu
authors.forename: Paul
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Hahn
mesh_terms: D020533:Angiogenesis Inhibitors / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D000818:Animals; D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D020256:Choroidal Neovascularization / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000209:etiology / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D002986:Clinical Trials as Topic; D016503:Drug Delivery Systems; D006801:Humans; D051795:Hypoxia-Inducible Factor 1, alpha Subunit / Q000378:metabolism; D015861:Retinal Neovascularization / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000209:etiology / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D015398:Signal Transduction; D042461:Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor A / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D020533:Angiogenesis Inhibitors; D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal; D051795:Hypoxia-Inducible Factor 1, alpha Subunit; D042461:Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor A