We are working on less irritating products

Vision Institute announces a change of culture in the hexagonal research Can the academic world and companies "go a long way together" in the interest of patients and the economy of the country What is ce qui se actuellement à l' hôpital des qui se passe des Quinze-currently in the Hospital of des qui se passe des Quinze se happening des 15- "From the outset, we have relied on the public-private partnership." "We want to ensure a continuum between basic research, clinical trials and technologies for industrial purposes," said Jean-François Ségovia, Director of the national hospital of Ophthalmology (CHNO). This institution, founded by Saint Louis in the 13th century to take care of the blind, enters the 21st century with a new ambition: to be part of the world's leading eye diseases. Many challenges face the Parisian Institute partners: decode the cellular eye machinery, identify architecture neural vision circuitry, discover molecules active against blinding disease, develop electronic visual disability assistance devices, experiment these solutions on the nearby hospital patients and valuing these discoveries by transferring them to industry. Eventually, some 350 people work in this temple of Ophthalmology, located at two steps of the Bastille.

World experts

The objective is also to attract au gratin of global experts in the discipline by offering them a very high-level scientific environment. "We will have about 20 different nationalities", provides José-Alain Sahel, Director of the centre and real combat of a project designed in 2002. Beginning of 2009, eight companies will be installed on the floor of the industry. It will suffice to them climb 20 steps to contact researchers and through the Court to meet with patients. A formula which seduced companies interested by this sharing of knowledge and equipment. "We have other candidates." "We will create an incubator in the vicinity," says José-Alain Sahel. "It is the first time that we are in such a structure." "We will install a search of three antenna", adds Henri Chibret, founder of the Group Théa in Clermont-Ferrand.

The first floor of the researchers, Serge Picaud conducts its work on the artificial retinas. This chip transforms the luminous message received by the eye into interpretable electrical signal the brain. A small camera attached to the glasses of the patient is responsible for the making of images. For the moment, a single patient was grafted in France with a matrix of 16 pixels provided by IMI German present on campus. This prosthesis to very low resolution nevertheless allows a blind to recognize the doors and Windows and thus regain a degree of autonomy of movement. "In 2009, we will try four new registries", adds Serge Picaud. Within a period of three to five years, it is hoped to develop a prosthesis of 600 pixels opening the voice recognition of a face. Christophe Baudoin works on glaucoma. A disease affecting 800,000 people in France, whose half does not tolerate the existing drops. "These are conservative products used by industrial toxic." We are working on less irritating products. "The leader of the Essilor optical could not be absent from this project. He studied the augmented reality glasses. These opto-electronic prostheses will reconstruct an image and the project on the active area of the retina to the victims of retinopathy. Will this almost unique cooperative model in France be school Many researchers in the public remain opposed to these partnerships which have the wind in the world. "You bring together all stakeholders in the innovation chain." "We will do the same thing at Jussieu", says the President of the University stone-and-Marie-Curie, Jean-Charles Pomerol.