Italian eyewear maker Luxottica (NYSE:LUX) and France’s leading lens manufacturer, Essilor (EPA:EI), have reached a €46 billion ($49 billion) agreement to merge and create a global eyewear company with annual revenue of more than €15 billion. “Finally … 2 products which are naturally complementary – namely frames and lenses – will be designed, manufactured and […]
Optical/Ophthalmic
VisionCare launches new clinical trial for telescope implant
VisionCare, Inc. said this week that the FDA approved its investigational device exemption for a new clinical trial in the U.S. evaluating its telescope implant in patients with end-stage macular degeneration. The Saratoga, Calif.-based company’s implantable miniature telescope, which was developed by Israeli inventor Dr. Isaac Lipshitz, is contraindicated for patients with previous intraocular or […]
Ivantis raises $25m in Series C to support Hydrus microstent
Ivantis said today it raised $25 million in a Series C round of financing to support its Hydrus microstent device designed for treating glaucoma. The round was led by newly invested RA Capital Management and joined by new investor Mérieux Développement and existing investors. Money raised will extend Irvine, Calif.-based Ivantis’ runway into 2020 and […]
Clearside Biomedical names Beckman as new CMO | Personnel Moves, Jan. 5, 2017
Clearside Biomedical (NSDQ:CLSD) today named Dr. Richard Beckman as chief medical officer. The ophthalmologist has 13 years of clinical practice under his belt, as well as 20 years of corporate executive and consultancy experience. Prior to joining Clearside, Beckman managed a pharmaceutical and medical device industry consulting firm. He has previously served as CMO and general […]
Ocular Therapeutix touts data from phase III trial of Dextenza
Ocular Therapeutix (NSDQ:OCUL) touted interim data today from its phase III trial of Dextenza for the treatment of post-surgical ocular inflammation and pain. The bioresorbable intracanalicular hydrogel plug is designed to release drugs at the ocular surface for up to 30 days. The company announced last month that Dextenza met the trial’s 2 primary efficacy endpoints: […]
BioTime and subsidiary establish cell manufacturing facility in Israel
BioTime Inc. (NYSE:BTX) and its subsidiary Cell Cure Neurosciences said today that it is establishing an 800 square meter cell manufacturing facility at the Hadassah University Hospital in Jerusalem. The manufacturing center will be staffed initially by 30 employees, according to the companies, and will be prepared to produce OpRegen for BioTime’s ongoing clinical trial […]
Nikon’s Optos, Google’s Verily ink deal for machine learning in retinal imaging
Nikon (TYO:7731) subsidiary Optos and Google (NSDQ:GOOG) unit Verily inked a deal this week to develop technologies for machine learning-enabled retinal imaging. The deal calls for the companies will collaborate on improving the screening for diabetic retinopathy and diabetic macular edema, both among the leading causes of blindness worldwide. The program combines Nikon’s leadership in optical engineering and precision […]
Sight Sciences wins Health Canada nod for TRAB 360
Venture-backed ophthalmic medical device company Sight Sciences said last week it won Health Canada approval for its TRAB 360 trabeculotomy system. The TRAB 360 system is now cleared for the microcatheterization of the Schlemm’s canal and cutting of trabecular meshwork to lower intraocular pressure in open angle glaucoma patients, the Menlo Park, Calif.-based company said. “My […]
Presbia announces 2-year Microlens data from PMA trial
Presbia (NSDQ:LENS) touted interim data today from its U.S. pivotal clinical trial, which it hopes will eventually support pre-market approval from the FDA for its Flexivue Microlens. The company is 2 years into the 3-year long trial and said that it anticipates submitting final data to the FDA in September 2017. The company’s lens is intended to […]
FDA approves Alcon’s AcrySof IQ ReStor intraocular lens
Novartis‘ (NYSE:NVS) eye care business, Alcon, said today that it won FDA approval for its AcrySof IQ ReStor multifocal toric intraocular lens. The lens treats presbyopia and pre-existing corneal astigmatism in adult patients undergoing cataract surgery. The AcrySof IQ ReStor intraocular lens is already commercially available in the E.U., Australia, Canada, parts of Central and […]
Second Sight Medical wins U.K. reimbursement nod for Argus II ‘bionic eye’
Second Sight Medical (NSDQ:EYES) said today that the U.K.’s National Health Service granted reimbursement for the company’s Argus II retinal prosthesis system for blind patients with retinitis pigmentosa. The Argus II induces visual perception in blind patients with retinitis pigmentosa by stimulating of the retina’s remaining cells with electrical pulses, which allows for the perception […]