World's first-ever braille tablet has been developed

The first-ever braille tablet has been developed, using a new liquid-based technology to create tactile relief outputting braille, graphics and maps for the blind and partially sighted.

Berkeley Architect sustains his vision despite blindness

Oh, that we could see as clearly as blind architect Chris Downey. Leading his UC Berkeley seminar students to equitable, barrier-eliminating design solutions or consulting on a 170,000-square-foot blind rehab center at the Veterans Affairs center in Palo Alto or filling the stroke seat on his East Bay Rowing Club team, the 52-year-old Piedmont architect and teacher says he lacks sight, but is not without vision.

Tablet computers for the blind in development

Is Braille on the way out? Do we have enough interest in teaching Braille to visually impaired students? Considering some of the subject matter cannot be explained to them by voice, are there any attempts to make this means of communication more accessible via smartphones and technology in the current age? Surprising to some, there are attempts being made to develop this technology to help the visually impaired students.

Intas launches RAZUMAB, the first biosimilar to Lucentis (ranibizumab)

Intas Pharmaceuticals has launched RAZUMAB, its biosimilar to Lucentis (ranibizumab).

Students in Birmingham develop a smart cane for the blind

A revolutionary ‘smart’ cane enabling the visually impaired to instantly identify friends and family could be available soon, thanks to students at Birmingham City University.

Scleral thinning seen following intravitreal anti-VEGF injections

Research conducted at the University Hospital in Bern, Switzerland suggests that scleral changes may occur in patients following repeated intravitreal injections of anti-VEGF agents in the same quadrant.

Converting rods into cones in a model of retinitis pigmentosa (RP) rescues retinal degeneration

Heritable retinal degeneration is a common cause of visual impairment and blindness, affecting millions of people worldwide. Many research groups have focused on targeted gene therapy as a treatment for these diseases. However, inherited retinal diseases can be caused by mutations in any one of more than 200 genes, and the pathogenic mechanisms of various mutations differ greatly. This was the motivating factor in the work by Dr James C Corbo and his team at the Washington University School of Medicine to develop gene-independent therapies that would be more widely applicable. This work has been published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.