Researchers believe peptide-based eye drops could be a simple, safe and effective way to slow vision loss in patients with retinitis pigmentosa (RP).

Two RP mouse models were used to test chemically synthesised peptides with an affinity for the pigment epithelium-derived factor (PEDF) receptor, PEDF-R. The peptides were delivered as eye drops. Another vector was engineered to enable intravitreal delivery (inside the eye) of mice. Retinal organoids were also used to better assess peptide effects in human tissue. These were exposed to cigarette smoke extract to create oxidative stress. 

The researchers concluded that peptide-based eye drops offer a promising, minimally invasive therapy to prevent photoreceptor degeneration in retinal disorders. The pre-clinical study was published in Communications Medicine.