Biophotonics '09: Lecture by Prof. Hubert van den Bergh

Using light for the detection and treatment of disease: From bench to bedside

Professor Hubert van den Bergh

Institute of Bio-engineering
Medical photonics group
Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (EPFL)
CH 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland

Tel.: +41-21-6933620
Fax : +41-21-6933626
E-mail: hubert.vandenbergh@epfl.ch

Abstract

We will treat three cases of translational research:

I. The detection of early bladder cancer using fluorescence cystoscopy, and the development of the drug HEXVIX and the associated instrumentation.

• The medical need, i.e. why do this development
• Enzymatic changes leading to the tumor-selective development of a fluorescing substance (Protoporphyrin IX)
• Optimizing the drug, packaging the drug, pharmacokinetics, spectroscopy
• Tests in cell culture
• Tests in organ culture
• Clinical tests
• Reaching the market
• What did we learn

II. The detection of early stage squamous cell cancer in the lung using autofluorescence video-bronchoscopy: The development of DAFE.

• The medical need
• Preclinical tests in the hamster's cheekpouch model
• Clinical measurement of the excitation-emission autofluorescence matrix
• Optimizing the video bronchoscope and the reference signals
• Clinical tests and the market

III. The treatment of exudative age related macular degeneration (a leading cause of blindness in the elderly) using photodynamic therapy, and combination therapy with an anti-VEGF agent.

• The medical need
• Photodynamic therapy, basics and early applications
• Chosing a drug and optimizing the transport vehicle(nanoparticles,liposomes)
• Tests in the CAM (Chorioallantoic membrane) model of the chicken embryo
• Designing the apparatus (diode laser coupled to a slit lamp)
• Tests in Ryan's monkey model
• Clinical tests (Pharmacokinetics, phases I,II, and III)
• The anti VEGF approach
• Combination therapy between PDT and anti VEGF (preclinical and clinical)
• The market
• The future: Triple therapy, slow release, alternative proteomic possibilities, photodynamic drug delivery, the photonics assisted stem cell approach.

Biography

Hubert van den Bergh studied chemistry at Williams College USA and obtained a Phd in physical chemistry at the University of Cambridge UK. He was a postdoctoral student at the Max Planck Institute in Göttingen Germany before joining the faculty at the Swiss Federal Instite of Technology in Lausanne Switzerland.

Slides

• Part 1
• Part 2

Link to program

• Session 3

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