Technology
Neuroptix is commercializing two complementary technologies which together form the basis for its optical diagnostic device – Quasi-Elastic Light Scattering (QLS) and Fluorescent Ligand Scanning (FLS). Combined in Neuroptix™ QEL scanning device, QLS and FLS enable non-invasive quantitative measurements of amyloid aggregates in the eye, to examine and measure deposits in specific areas of the lens.
Neuroptix’s development of the QEL platform envisions a compact, easy to use, clinical device for in situ patient examination in a doctor’s office setting.
Preclinical testing of the QEL platform has yielded highly encouraging results, including the discovery that the QEL system was sensitive enough to be able to both detect and monitor progression of the beta amyloid proteins in genetically-engineered Alzheimer’s mice.
The combined platform is currently available in the United States for investigational use only, and is intended for clinical evaluation and measurement of aggregation in anatomically defined regions of the anterior segment of the eye. The device is also designed to be used as a clinical laser ophthalmoscope and for anterior segment photography.
The company is currently selling research instruments for animal studies (Neuroptix™ QEL 1300), which has been noted for its unique measuring capabilities, high sensitivity, reliability and ease of use. Neuroptix is also developing new diagnostic agents for application in screening for Alzheimer’s disease. The company also distributes Methoxy-X04 and Methoxy-X34 compounds.
Quasi-Elastic Light Scattering (QLS)
Quasi-Elastic Light Scattering (QLS) is measured by focusing a low-power laser beam in a fluid under investigation, and collecting the light scattered at various angles from a small sample volume. QLS provides information about the diffusion coefficient of large molecules and small particles – making it a highly successful technique for measuring the beta amyloid proteins under investigation for the presence of Alzheimer’s Disease.
The scattered light is detected by a photon-counting detector and correlator assembly to produce a correlation output function. Based on the Brownian motion of solute molecules within a solvent, QLS provides an estimate of the molecular size of scattering elements within a solvent system by precisely measuring the intensity of dynamically scattered light as a function of time.
In protein-condensation diseases such as age-related cataract, Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, and others, proteins associate to form very high-molecular-weight aggregates that are large enough to scatter incident light. By monitoring this light scattering, the process of pathogenic protein aggregation can be directly measured.
n the course of investigating the utility of the QLS technology, research teams aimed pulses of low-power infrared laser light into designated zones of the eye. They measured the backscattered light using a photodetector and an autocorrelator assembly and obtained a highly precise and specific picture of the suspect proteins. The technique promises accurate monitoring of Alzheimer’s progression because operators can repeatedly examine the exact same region of the eye to detect changes in the size and shape of proteins over time.
Fluorescent Ligand Scanning (FLS)
Fluorescent Ligand Scanning (FLS) is a technique in which a compound composed of beta amyloid-specific small molecules is dropped into a patient’s eye, which is scanned by the Neuroptix™ QEL instrument.
The small molecules are absorbed into the lens and bind to the amyloid aggregates. The FLS system excites the fluorescent ligands that bind to amyloid and quantitatively measures emissions in specific anatomical locations to biochemically confirm the presence of amyloid.
The binding compounds emit light in a specific, detectable range of wavelengths. If binding increases over time, a positive diagnosis can be made, enabling clinicians to track the progress of the disease in patients by measuring levels of fluorescence – as well as potentially enabling doctors and pharmaceutical researchers to monitor the efficacy of Alzheimer’s drugs in clinical trial settings.