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Another group of presenters discussed the use of nanoparticles, microbeads and microneedles. Mansoor M. Amiji, PhD, said that nanoparticles can help overcome barriers to drug delivery from the organ level to the subcellular level. Another research laboratory was investigating the effectiveness of hollow and solid microneedles that penetrate only hundreds of micrometers into the cornea or sclera to deliver drugs.

A safer alternative to direct intravitreous injections might be transscleral delivery into the vitreous using subconjunctival injections, said Michael Robinson, MD, adding that researchers needed a clear understanding of the dynamic barriers for the technique to work in treating retinal diseases. Another researcher in this area, Dayle H. Geroski, PhD, suggested that the relatively high permeability of the sclera offers great potential for transscleral drug delivery, especially for administration to the posterior part of the eye.

Other research focused on photodynamic therapy, which uses a photosensitizer agent that localizes more or less selectively to the target tissue and is activated by light, triggering chemical reactions that injure the target tissue.

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