(ANSA) – BOLOGNA, 14 JUL – Myopia, astigmatism and loss of visual acuity can be caused by keratoconus, an eye disease that is still difficult to prevent and combat today, if not with surgery. At the University of Ferrara Ilaria Conti, researcher of the Department of Translational Medicine and for Romagna, is studying new non-invasive therapies to contrast the disease, thanks to the funds raised with the 5×1000 in the year 2021.
“Keratoconus develops when the collagen fibers, which form the architecture of the cornea, lose the bonds that hold them together and progressively tend to slide over each other, increasing the curvature and at the same time reducing the thickness of the corneal tissue,” he explains. Ilaria Conti. “The structure of the cornea thus takes the shape of a cone, with consequences on the ability to see, both from near and far. It is a real visual degeneration, which worsens over time”.
There is still no effective drug therapy against keratoconus and the main reason is due to the lack of information collected on the biological mechanisms responsible.
For this, explains the researcher, it is essential to study a preventive approach to the disease, by means of an early diagnosis, which prevents worrying stages of development. The idea is to “create treatments that prevent the formation of the keratoconus itself” by studying the “microRNAs as a sort of index, a marker that indicates whether and how the disease is developing”. (HANDLE).
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