Alany, RYoung, SGreen, CThrimawithana, Thilini2011-07-202011http://hdl.handle.net/2292/6983sclera into the choroid of rats and the barrier effects of the Bruch‘s membrane and/or the retinal pigmented epithelium (RPE). A significant up-regulation of Cx43 expression in the choroid of light damaged rat eyes was observed, due to inflammation associated with the early phase of retinal degeneration. Periocular injection of Cx43 AsODN incorporated in the MC-ι-CG system resulted in significant reduction of Cx43 expression in the choroid of rats. This thesis has therefore identified and characterised a new polymeric system based on MC-ι- CG which provides aqueous loading of therapeutics. As such, this polymeric system is suitable for the delivery of AsODNs and bioactive proteins. Results also demonstrated the efficacy of the transscleral route in delivering macromolecules to the choroid. Moreover, the work offers a new perspective in the management of ARMD at an early phase of disease progression.Items in ResearchSpace are protected by copyright, with all rights reserved, unless otherwise indicated. Previously published items are made available in accordance with the copyright policy of the publisher.https://researchspace.auckland.ac.nz/docs/uoa-docs/rights.htmhttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/nz/ThesisCopyright: The authorQ112200925