Novadaq Technologies Inc., today announced that it has entered into a strategic alliance and signed an exclusive agreement with The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory (APL), Laurel, Maryland, to license a patented method for the diagnosis and treatment of “wet” type Age-Related Macular Degeneration (AMD). Macular degeneration is a progressive eye condition affecting as many as 15 million Americans and millions more around the world. In Europe alone, more than 200,000 patients per year are diagnosed with wet type AMD. The multi-year licensing agreement enables Novadaq to develop the technology and to distribute the resulting product in markets outside of the United States. The alliance will enable Novadaq to collaborate with the Applied Physics Laboratory’s Institute for Advanced Science and Technology in Medicine to develop innovative medical technologies.

“This agreement with Johns Hopkins provides an outstanding opportunity for Novadaq to expand our product offerings within our area of expertise,” says Rick Mangat, one of the founders of Novadaq Technologies. "This technology is similar to our current product being developed for coronary artery imaging in that, it makes use of the unique properties of indocyanine green, so it greatly complements and strengthens our core competencies. Also, the expertise we can now tap into at APL will significantly enhance our research and development capabilities”.

“This alliance and agreement with Novadaq presents a tremendous opportunity for the Applied Physics Laboratory to extend its capabilities to additional critical areas of biomedical research, starting with this technology addressing a very serious retinal disease,” says Steve Yanek, the Institute for Advanced Science and Technology in Medicine’s interim director.

AMD attacks the macula of the eye, where sharpest central vision occurs. AMD is the number one cause of vision loss and legal blindness amongst adults over the age of sixty. As our population ages, it is predicted that we will experience a virtual epidemic of AMD. As many as 14- 24% of the population aged 65-74 years and 35% of people aged 75 years or more may suffer from this disease. Typically, AMD robs those affected of their sharp central vision and can dim contrast sensitivity and color perception. It destroys the clear “straight on” central vision that is required for activities most people take for granted. The impact of developing AMD can be devastating to those who were independent and active.

In "wet" type macular degeneration, abnormal blood vessels (known as choroidal neovascularization) grow under the retina in the area of the macula. These new blood vessels may then bleed and leak fluid, thereby causing the retina to bulge or lift up, thus distorting or destroying central vision. Under these circumstances, vision loss may be rapid and severe. The choroidal neovascularization is supplied with blood by feeder vessels arising from the normal choroidal circulation.

Recently, laser photocoagulation therapy targeting the feeder vessels has been shown to offer some promise in the treatment of AMD. However, this technology is not without difficulties and drawbacks. In many cases, it is difficult to identify the feeder vessels and to ensure that the laser is correctly aimed. Although targeted feeder vessels are closed by laser photocoagulation, they often re-open, requiring repeated treatment. Delivery of sufficient photocoagulation energy to the feeder vessel can result in damage to the retina. The patient may notice this as loss of vision in a small area of the visual field. In cases where pigmentation is light, often not enough laser light is absorbed to produce vessel closure, regardless of high-energy delivery.

The technology licensed by Novadaq overcomes all of these shortcomings of conventional laser photocoagulation. Firstly, this proprietary method of ICG video angiography, offers improved capabilities for feeder vessel identification. Secondly, the use of ICG in dye enhanced laser photocoagulation causes the transduction of light energy into heat to be focused primarily in targeted feeder vessels, thereby closing them more easily, while reducing concomitant thermal damage to overlying retinal tissue. Thus, by combining the diagnostic and treatment instruments as Novadaq proposes, targeting and closing feeder vessels by laser photocoagulation becomes more precise and efficient.

“We are very excited about this technology and the agreement,” says Mangat. “AMD is a terribly debilitating disease that affects so many adults. The ability to incorporate our platform ICG imaging technology into a product that can diagnose and treat this condition, enhances the delivery of care, improves outcomes for patients and reduces overall procedural costs by combining two devices into one.”

“The agreement with Johns Hopkins and the ability to develop an effective system for the treatment of AMD, further confirms our belief that Novadaq will become a leader in the development of innovative products for the healthcare industry,” said Clancy Ethans, Senior Investment Manager, James Richardson and Sons, Ltd., Winnipeg, Manitoba, one of the early investors in Novadaq. “Novadaq is executing their strategic plan very well by capitalizing on their core competencies to provide solutions for patients suffering from a variety of illnesses, now including those suffering from the potentially devastating vision loss caused by AMD”.

The Applied Physics Laboratory, a division of The Johns Hopkins University, meets critical national challenges through the innovative application of science and technology. APL formed the Institute for Advanced Science and Technology in Medicine in 1995 to establish the Laboratory as a center of excellence in biomedical and health care systems research, development and education. For more information, visit www.jhuapl.edu.

Novadaq Technologies, a privately held company, was founded in April 2000 and is a spin-off from the National Research Council’s Institute for Biodiagnostics in Winnipeg, Manitoba. Novadaq has received CE Marking and Health Canada approval for their first product, a revolutionary intra-operative imaging system for cardiac surgery. The system, unlike traditional angiographic systems, does not require catheterization of the coronary vessels in the operating room, which can potentially be harmful to patients, does not significantly increase operative procedural times and is not associated with any ionizing radiation. The Novadaq SPY Intra-operative Imaging System enables cardiac surgeons to simply and efficiently confirm proper placement of their coronary artery bypass grafts and assess the functionality of those grafts while the patient is still on the operating room table.

Novadaq’s corporate offices are in Toronto, Ontario with research and development offices in Winnipeg, Manitoba and global sales and marketing offices in Vero Beach, Florida.

For more information about Novadaq Technologies, Inc. please visit the company’s website at www.novadaq.com.