Halozyme Presents rHuPH20 Hyaluronidase Preclinical Data

Halozyme Therapeutics has presented results from preclinical studies with the company's recombinant human PH20 (rHuPH20) hyaluronidase enzyme at the 2005 Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology annual meeting.

Preclinical safety and pharmacology animal studies conducted with Halozyme's rHuPH20 hyaluronidase enzyme showed that when viscoelastic agents commonly used in cataract surgery were left in the eyes of animals, injection of Halozyme's rHuPH20 enzyme into the front of the eye significantly reduced the incidence and severity of intraocular pressure rises.

Such pressure "spikes" are believed to occur when viscoelastic materials used in the surgical procedure clog up the eye's drainage canals and prevent fluid from properly draining out of the eye, a process that can potentially result in permanently dilated pupils, persistent glare, pain and discomfort, and retinal and optic nerve vascular occlusion.

The data also showed that injection of rHuPH20 into the front of the eye caused no toxicity to the corneal endothelial cells in the eye.